KnowWhat'sGoingOn...
KnowWhat'sGoingOn...
A GadgetLady site
Do you have a
cheating spouse
secretive teenager
suspicious nanny
company to protect from employee actions
liability for the actions of others
need to know the truth?
These situations present a challenge, because in most cases, they directly involve and/or impact the party who is seeking the information they need to protect their well-being. Being kept in the dark can have all kinds of negative ramifications - legal, financial, physical danger, and in some cases, it can threaten one's life. Cheating spouses can introduce the possibility of exposure to life-threatening diseases. A secretive teenager can make decisions that put themselves in danger, such as getting involved with the wrong people on the internet. Unscrupulous nannies can do irrepairable harm to precious, defenseless children. Employees can expose their employers to situations that lead to litigation, lawsuits, and potential financial loss. People who put their assets at risk, such as bail bondsmen, can be devastated by the actions of a bail jumper.
In all of the above situations, there is a need to know the truth. In most of these cases, the person seeking the truth has a right to know the information they are seeking, but they cannot get it from the party who is deceiving them.
When a person is armed with the truth, they can make the decisions they need to, to secure their well-being. Not knowing the truth, especially when you know in your gut you are being deceived, can be paralyzing. The spouse who suspects he is being cheated on can get to the point where he cannot focus on anything but the deceit he suspects. When he is alone, he is wondering where his spouse is, and what she is doing that he does not know about. When he is with his spouse, he is wondering where she has been, and what she has done behind his back. As long as the truth is not on the table, there can be no resolution. There can be no forward progress. Only the paralysis of being in a situation where there is a total loss of control. Indeed, the truth will set you free. It will set you free from the uncertainty and ambiguity that keeps you bound to a bad situation. When a person knows the truth, they can decide what course of action is best for them. A person may choose the path of forgiveness and reconciliation, or he may choose to remove himself from the situation, but at least he can make the choice, knowing what he is dealing with. But without the truth, there can be no resolution.
There are many ways to find the truth.
It used to be that if a person wanted to find the truth they needed, they had to spend lots of time trying to do so. They would spend time following the subject around, and going to great measures to avoid getting caught. It was nearly impossible to get the information needed, with such limited technology. A person usually had to resort to hiring an expensive private investigator to do the work for them.
Now, thanks to modern technology, and the internet, it is much easier, and much more cost-effective to find the truth. There are many products that take advantage of modern technology to level the playing field. These products have also caused private investigators to be much more efficient in their operations.
Find out where they are and where they have been...
GPS tracking devices can enable anyone to track the location of a person, a vehicle, or an asset anywhere on the earth, by receiving and transmitting signals from the 27 GPS satellites orbiting the earth. These satellites receive and transmit the current location, speed, distance traveled, and how long an object remains stationary. Current and historical data can easily be obtained, regarding where a target, such as a vehicle, has been, and where that target is currently located. There are 2 kinds of GPS tracking devices - real-time and passive.
Real-time GPS trackers allow instant tracking, via the internet. The person who wishes to obtain a location simply logs on to a website and sends a request to locate the tracker. Within seconds, the current location is reported, along with the speed that the tracker is currently traveling. This data can be refreshed (updated) as often as every 15 seconds. Real-time trackers also have a feature called geofencing. A geofence is a virtual boundary around a location (such as home, school, or work) that can be set up by the user. If the GPS tracker enters or leaves the geofence, the user will get an SMS message (text message) showing that this has occurred. In addition to the real-time tracking capabilities, historical location data is stored on the website, for the user's later retrieval and review. Real-time GPS tracking devices require activation and subscription to a service provider. There are many real-time GPS devices available. The most popular real-time tracking devices available today are the WorldTracker GPRS and the Trimtrak. Both of these trackers provide worldwide coverage, and are the most sought-after trackers by private investigators. The WorldTracker GPRS is one of the smallest trackers available. It is very reliable, and is capable of location updates every 15 seconds. Although the battery life for the WorldTracker GPRS is around 4 days, it has an optional 60 or 90 day battery pack that includes a motion sensor. The motion sensor turns the unit off when there is no motion, and activates the unit when motion is detected. The Trimtrak remains a popular device. It is a cost-effective, reliable unit that operates on 4 AA batteries. Battery life is around 1 month for the Trimtrak. There are also trackers that not only use the GPS satellites, but they get assistance from the cellular networks. These devices have enhanced location capabilities that enable them to be located in places where traditional GPS trackers cannot be located, such as in parking garages and dense, wooded areas. These trackers do not have to have a line of sight to the sky, as some others do, which makes them perfect for concealment in closed places. The WorldTracker PLD is one such device. Another is the CDMA-PRO.
Passive GPS trackers (also called dataloggers) do not report their location in real-time. Instead, they log the location data in memory at preset intervals. The amount of information logged is only limited by the memory on the device, and the battery life. When the user wants to retrieve the information, they plug the device into a computer and download the data into a word processing document or spreadsheet. This is a great option if the user is not concerned with having up-to-the-minute knowledge of the location of the tracker, because there are no monthly fees to pay, and no website subscriptions. Business owners who track their fleets find passive GPS trackers useful, because they provide a record of mileage traveled, as well as location information, for tax purposes. The TrackStick is the most widely used data logger.
Find out what they are talking about...
Digital audio recorders are often used to determine the content of interactions that are being hidden from the person being deceived. Today's tapeless models allow for recording large amounts of audio, without the need for tapes. It's all stored in flash memory inside of the recorder. Most digital audio recorders are small in size - very different from those of just a few years ago. Digital audio recorders can record audio for more than 500 continuous hours, assuming the unit has sufficient power to record to memory capacity. Digital audio recorders made by Diasonic can record audio for periods ranging from 17 hours to 565 hours. Aside from A/C adapters, digital audio recorders are powered using AA and AAA batteries. Some models have optional long-life power supplies. Diasonic offers an optional 62 hour battery pack that can be used to power Diasonic recorders. This enables continuous recording for 62 hours, when an A/C outlet cannot be used, or when AA batteries do not last long enough. Most models include voice activation, which enables the recorder to automatically start recording when sound is detected, and to automatically stop recording after a few seconds of silence. This saves battery life, and avoids long periods of silence between recorded material. Most models also include accessories that allow for recording of both sides of conversations on landline phones, and for recording of a cell phone conversation the user is a party to. Recorded content can be downloaded to a computer, and transferred to CD's, DVD's, or other media.
Find out what they are doing on the computer...
Keystroke loggers allow for discovery of activity taking place on a computer by recording keystrokes made by the user of the computer. This information can be used to monitor email and internet activity. A keystroke logger is a small device that is plugged between the keyboard and the computer. There is no software to install. Since the keystroke logger is a hardware device, it is undetectable by the user of the computer. The only way to detect it is to physically observe its presence. The keystroke logger records all keystrokes entered, only limited by the memory on the device. When the owner of the keystroke logger wants to retrieve the data, they can unplug the keystroke logger, plug it into another computer, and copy the data to Notepad or Wordpad. Then the memory on the keystroke logger can be erased, and the device reinstalled on the computer being monitored. Data can also be retrieved on the same computer that is being monitored.
Another device, called the PeepStick, can be used to monitor online activity. The PeepStick allows for remote monitoring of activity taking place on a computer owned by the person doing the monitoring. Once the PeepStick is paired with the computer being monitored, it can be plugged into any other computer with internet access, to retrieve screen shots of current and historical activity. The PeepStick does not record keystrokes, so most people use this device in combination with a keystroke logger.
Look in on the situation (video surveillance)...
There are very many video surveillance options that allow local and real-time remote monitoring of premises from anywhere in the world where there is an internet connection. In this case, as for many other products, the internet and modern technology have combined to make video surveillance more efficient and less costly than ever before. Surveillance systems can now be obtained for a few hundred dollars (or less) that have features previously only found in systems costing thousands of dollars. The possibilities are numerous. There are wired and wireless cameras, and covert cameras that can be 'hidden in plain view', in everyday household items, such as desk clocks, wall clocks, air purifiers, exit signs, DVD players, VCR's, and plain black boxes, to name a few. There are also very small, pinhole cameras, and cameras that have button and screw lenses, that can be hidden behind pictures and other items. Video captured by the cameras can be monitored locally on the premises, or it can be monitored remotely via the internet. Video can also be recorded to a computer's hard drive, to a DVR (digital video recorder), or to external media, such as an SD card. Video surveillance systems are remarkably easy to set up, and are very user-friendly. Most users have their systems up and running in under 30 minutes. Video surveillance systems can be stationary, where the cameras and other equipment are installed and remain on the premises, or they can be portable, and meant to be transported and used while traveling. Portable systems include cameras that are so small, they can be hidden in the button of a shirt or jacket, and DVR's that are the size of a pack of cigarettes (such as the PV500). Another model, the MicroPro, is even smaller, measuring only 2 1/4" x 2" x 1/2", and weighing only ounces.