nmc

Company Profile

We are locally based Security Consultancy facilitating the needs of local businesses and individuals. We do not have an international team on a moments notice to move anywhere in the world but we do have a dedicated team in the North East of England with extensive experience across the sector. For further information about us please take a look at our website.

www.durham-investigations.co.uk

I have recently attended several interviews for surveillance freelance work and have been blown away by what I would consider to be lack of preparation on behalf of some applicants and would like to take this opportunity to reinforce all the good comments and tips received on the course and the Argus forum.

Here are some of my observations, which I know 99.9 % of us will see as basics but here they are:

Dress - People looking scruffy, unshaved, trousers not pressed and clearly way to big or they need to get out lose a couple of stone (not pounds).  Attention to detail, wearing white sports socks with a black suit…..

Paper work - One interview was delayed because people had not brought copies of their certification, it was in bold PLEASE BRING COPIES OF ALL CERTIFICATION so why would you not bother to do it…..

CV’s - You will hand them out so take copies, I took six as discussed on the forum and think that’s a safe number.

“Bit about you” Have it prepared, it seems to be the icebreaker they all use, for me this is by far the most difficult bit.  In the military you were not encouraged to blow smoke up your own backside and I was certainly one who frowned on it and would rather see than hear results, bottom line……. get used to it and fast.  You have got minutes to impress, don’t waffle, look at the company and tailor your experience to meet their needs.  Do your homework and find out what they want.

IPAD & Drop Box - The way ahead!! After the course I scanned every certificate I own, you never know what they might ask you for and if you can bring it up in a flash and have it in their inbox before you leave the building you WILL stand out from the rest.

Have as many irons in the fire as possible to cover the quiet periods: surveillance, private investigation and CP work for me so far has been either very quiet or very manic.

Mark Thompson, Lateo Surveillance

Company Profile

Lateo Surveillance has been established by Ex Military surveillance specialists who have operated across the globe in all theatres of operations.  Lateo which is Latin “to remain hidden” underpins the ethos that is behind the teams drive and determination to achieve the results which count. We employ tried and tested Standing Operating Procedures to produce first class results with No Compromise to the Highest Standards you would expect from a professional organisation.

Based in the South West of England we provide both local and national services however unlike an awful lot of internet based surveillance and investigation companies Lateo Surveillance are not middle men; we do not farm out jobs to unknown contractors which means we can offer a personal service at the best possible prices.

Visit us @ www.lateosurveillance.co.uk

We managed to give 2 units from Gotek a pretty thorough test over an extensive period of time in both a training and operational environment and have been pleasantly surprised at the results. Those just setting out in the industry will be relieved to learn that these units will not break the bank and will quickly allow you deploy them and bring in some much needed revenue. Not only are the units themselves very capable but the company were also very easy to deal with, always a concern when ordering from the internet!

The full article has been published in the January issue of The Circuit Magazine which can be purchased from either the BBA or the Circuit Website direct. For those of you out there with an Apple iOS device you can also get it on your device from the Apple Newsstand

The view of many is that the use of Private Investigators is somewhat unscrupulous and recent revelations at the Leveson Inquiry have hardly helped matters but there are good, skilful, ethical investigators out there that can help your business and help the economy. Why should you suffer at the hands of unscrupulous employees or competitors? If employees seek to take advantage of their position then you should be able to respond and using a good, ethical Private Investigations firm could well be the correct response. Make sure that you are confident with your chosen investigator, do your own research in to them, if possible meet them face to face so that you can be as sure as you can be that they are the people to help you with your problems rather than adding to them!

2011 has been a demanding year, of that there is no doubt. 2012 looks like it could be equally as tough, why not be proactive and engage the services of a Private Investigator and shed your business of the burdens that it is currently slowing it recovery. You do not have to put up with the situations that we have described so why are you?

nmc

We are locally based Security Consultancy facilitating the needs of local businesses and individuals. We do not have an international team on a moments notice to move anywhere in the world but we do have a dedicated team in the North East of England with extensive experience across the sector. For further information about us please take a look at our website.

I have been very disappointed to find whilst conducting market research into my local competitors all who offer or claim they have the capability to conduct surveillance at an extremely high level when in reality they are untrained, unqualified and ill-equipped to conduct any form of surveillance.

More frustrating was to find my local competition isn’t local and based “Up North” over three hundred miles away…  with head offices or operators based in every city in the UK…

Even more frustrating is the fact that the so-called local business gets a job and then farms it out via a network of other so-called local agents.

This practice I believe to be potentially dangerous and here is an example:

I put in for a relatively local job via an agent forum; the investigator explained to me this was a job for the local council, which he had been asked to do, imposing surveillance onto one of its employees who was moonlighting.  He freely passed on all the details including the alphas name, address, DOB, bravo details and finally offered to send me a picture.  When I asked him if RIPA had been authorised there was a moments silence and a response of “don’t worry about that”.  Clearly I didn’t do the job but that’s a lot of information, which I am sure his client would not want to be sent over the insecure information highway… That’s one example of many.

Finally during my market research I spoke with a so-called “Local Investigation Company” a lady whom could clearly “talk the talk” upon asking her if her teams of “surveillance operatives” were qualified as I was potentially going to be paying a lot of money and said I wouldn’t pay for a plumber to fix my boiler if they weren’t registered she stated the following:

“My guys are the best in the business, they can do this job blind folded, they are highly trained in surveillance as laid down by the industry standard Process Service Standards” (It sounded good!!)  She continued to state her team were normal people unlike the ex military types whom were stupid and inflexible even worse were ex police whom could not think for themselves, just like the plumber we are regulated so don’t worry about anything…….. (Really!!) But wait for the killer punch she actually said “There are a lot of sharks out there so be carful” This was all done on loudspeaker in my office during a lunch break in front of members of the Surveillance and Reconnaissance Wing of the Operational Training Group, I kid you not!!

1. The reality is her teams were either untrained or glorified postmen or women…
2. I have conducted a process course (and enjoyed it) but we talked about surveillance for less than two minutes.  Two completely different skill sets (A million miles apart).
3. Investigators unfortunately are NOT regulated or that clown would not be allowed to conduct her self in such an unprofessional manner.

Sadly there are a lot of people out there who are being ripped off, investigators charging way over the odds for services they do not provide, information being passed through many hands before it finally hits the guys on the ground every one taking their cut.  In my eyes two groups suffer, the Client and the Operator.

Would the client be happy if they knew? Are these people upfront? Do they say to the client “ We don’t do the surveillance, reports, editing, nothing, we sub contract it out, pass your information over and take our cut”….  (I doubt it very much)

In my opinion there is a need to have the subcontract function between genuine businesses that conduct and more importantly understand the associated difficulties.  We can’t do every job that comes in; we all spend time and money advertising and deserve a return however I would not advertise Counter Surveillance for example if I had no idea how to do it.  Morally I believe it to be wrong, time and time again you come up against the same issues by some cuckoo that does not understand the basics, not briefed the client appropriately hence unhappy client.

Regulating the Industry as discussed on the course is the only way to get rid of the pond life, genuine businesses I believe even the (Stupid & inflexible ex military types) whom own businesses such as myself! will strive to get there and Be the Best at what we do.

Mark Thompson, Lateo Surveillance

Company Profile

Lateo Surveillance has been established by Ex Military surveillance specialists who have operated across the globe in all theatres of operations.  Lateo which is Latin “to remain hidden” underpins the ethos that is behind the teams drive and determination to achieve the results which count. We employ tried and tested Standing Operating Procedures to produce first class results with No Compromise to the Highest Standards you would expect from a professional organisation.

Based in the South West of England we provide both local and national services however unlike an awful lot of internet based surveillance and investigation companies Lateo Surveillance are not middle men; we do not farm out jobs to unknown contractors which means we can offer a personal service at the best possible prices.

Visit us @ www.lateosurveillance.co.uk

Unfortunately, this is something that i feel the former military personal can be particularly poor at. Why is this? I do not think it boils down to education; many military people are well educated intelligent people so perhaps it is more the culture? Being a former serviceman myself and still being very much involved with military personnel i see poor communication, especially via email all too often.  People paying for a service appear to think that this gives them the god given right to be direct, rude, unpleasant and insulting - it does not, not in any way shape or form. Not only will this make you look unprofessional, word will spread and people will be reluctant to work for or with you and this may well have an affect on your reputation or that of your business. Some people may feel that during these economical depressing times it is unlikely that people will turn work down no matter how they are treated via email, to a point this is true but even those that cannot turn down the work will begin to look for other avenues so that they do not need to put up with your irate emails.

If you receive an email that has angered you, wait before you respond. Write a draft reply, read it, ask someone close to you to read it to ensure that your response comes across in the best possible way and then and only then hit the send button. If email is becoming a problem then look at others ways to communicate with the other party such as a telephone call or skpye and you may find that issues can be resolved more readily. You could even go about things the old fashioned way and arrange a face to face meeting!

nmc

Company Profile

We are locally based Security Consultancy facilitating the needs of local businesses and individuals. We do not have an international team on a moments notice to move anywhere in the world but we do have a dedicated team in the North East of England with extensive experience across the sector. For further information about us please take a look at our website.

www.durham-investigations.co.uk

The transition is different for us all, as an Ex WO2 from a very chilled out unit I feel the change has not been as traumatic as I thought it might (Touch wood!!).  However there are a couple of my mates who are struggling to fit into the new way of life, I believe because they won’t let go or have chosen the wrong industry.

Civvy street is very different, for me the most frustrating aspect has been relating to being paid.  Everyone is happy whilst you are working and getting the results but when the job is over the calls can stop, threatening to drag the investigator to the cash machine and bang his pin number in with his forehead was not with hindsight the right move, yes I was paid within the hour but surprise surprise no more work!! Fortunately that was whilst I was still in and had an income to rely on, that luxury has gone, diplomacy is a skill to master!

My advise would be regardless of rank, unit or time served, close that chapter in the book of life and start a new one.  Take the good we have learnt and remember the bad, think back to day one, turn up on time, smart, knowing what you are going to do and how you are going to do it.  Most of all keep your mouth shut until you are accepted.  We have all done this many times before.

We have all got some thing civilian corporations would give their back teeth for, Selfless commitment, Loyalty, Respect of others, Discipline, Courage and Integrity the core values which turned us into soldiers it make us who we are whether we think so or not.   That said, they aren’t coming to you no matter how shiny your boots are!! and a  job offer is not going to arrive in your JPA inbox so get out there and fight for what you want.

Prep for Battle with a slice of CAKE and some good old-fashioned luck (If not make your own) you won’t go far wrong!!

Good Luck to all!!

Mark Thompson, Lateo Surveillance

Company Profile

Lateo Surveillance has been established by Ex Military surveillance specialists who have operated across the globe in all theatres of operations.  Lateo which is Latin “to remain hidden” underpins the ethos that is behind the teams drive and determination to achieve the results which count. We employ tried and tested Standing Operating Procedures to produce first class results with No Compromise to the Highest Standards you would expect from a professional organisation.

Based in the South West of England we provide both local and national services however unlike an awful lot of internet based surveillance and investigation companies Lateo Surveillance are not middle men; we do not farm out jobs to unknown contractors which means we can offer a personal service at the best possible prices.

www.lateosurveillance.co.uk

The Military coined a phrase “Camera paints a picture, Video tells a story” then went out and bought shed loads of them.  Why?  It was decided (amongst other reasons) that they were a lot easier to use thus reducing the training burden and later guys were given no more than a couple of hours talking about framing and that was that, away you go.  This compared with 6 to 10 weeks photography training (No brainer for the military)

Granted, most clients want video and for the right reasons it does tell a story but a question I pose is would the skills used in photography turn you into a better videographer?

People (including myself) were very quick to grab a handheld Sony in place of a SLR now the DSLR and forget the basics of photography why?  Because it was easier, did I have to think about the right shutter speed to freeze movement, did I have to worry about the correct ISO or aperture, nope just point and press!!

I stood on many a camera course in OPTAG and RAF Cosford baffled with figures and covered in solutions to find I had under or over exposed yet another role of film then along came the DSLR…….. This bambino changed photography over night and the Military saw that and went out again and bought more shed loads of them only to find to get a good shot you still needed to think and understand the basic principles to get the best from the camera to produce a good quality image.  Why the step back?  In one word QUALITY standard definition i.e. Mini DV was good but as soon as the light dropped so did the quality….. Dramatically, along came night shot, fantastic at close range and at night, rubbish through a vehicle screen and during certain times of the day. The military got around this with some clever guys working over the water but they would be way out of the normal price range.

As it becomes harder to get hold of good quality Mini DV handhelds what are the options left?  None of the newer camcorders carry DTG forward (Please correct me if I am wrong) I have spoken with Sony & Panasonic. (I managed to carry forward the DTG on my Panasonic HDC TM900) but have been informed it is only an overlay, so technically not of an evidential standard) There are ways around this i.e. running through specific recording devices but this does down grade the quality slightly.

I am not saying the DSLR camera should or will replace the handheld but here are some advantages I believe are worth considering…….

1.    Quality – With a good body but more importantly good Lens it beats the handheld video by a mile.

2.    Lowlight Capability – Much better than the handheld video BUT you have to be able to push it to its limits.

3.    Fitted with the correct filters you can penetrated glass (Car windscreens) much better than the handheld.

4.    Pictures are easier forwarded onto other team members (I know and have done this from my handheld but the quality is not good)

5.    Analysis – A quick drive past with the video rolling is good but on the ground the quality is not great when reviewing via the remote screen, a good quality digital image is easier, quicker, and much more detailed as we found out whilst on a job in Liverpool where the digital camera was used to identify a very small CCTV camera which was not picked up on the video due to the one step PB zoom and quality.

6.    Meta data stored on the image is classed as evidential as is the analogue handheld.

7.    Range – I have only used one x2 video converter which worked well (C/S Bravo’s) the rest have been rubbish at the top end of the zoom. A good quality lens and converter really does give you a cracking stand off distance.

So for me its a no brainer, as I said earlier I am NOT saying it should replace the handheld but another tool in our bag of tricks to catch out the unsuspecting scum bag.

How many times have you reviewed the victor to find a shiny windscreen with an argument whether or not that is the subject? Stick a good quality polarising filter on to your DSLR, set the right shutter speed, aperture, and ASA and let the camera work its magic!!

The down side is cost and training but I believe it is worth it in the long run as it forces you to think about all the basic principles which has to be a good thing???

Recently there has been more demand for photography with DTG stamp rather than video why? I know of a case where video footage had been take of a subject who claimed they could not walk, carry/lift etc.  they were caught on victor walking and lifting but only for a very short period, the client then asked for some photography rather than video as they had been informed it would work in their favour which it did!!

Thanks for reading!

Mark Thompson, Lateo Surveillance

Company Profile

Lateo Surveillance has been established by Ex Military surveillance specialists who have operated across the globe in all theatres of operations.  Lateo which is Latin “to remain hidden” underpins the ethos that is behind the teams drive and determination to achieve the results which count. We employ tried and tested Standing Operating Procedures to produce first class results with No Compromise to the Highest Standards you would expect from a professional organisation.

At Lateo Surveillance we believe there is only one way to do the job, the “Right Way” which protects everyone concerned i.e. both parties.  We understand the importance of security and confidentiality, operating not only within the law of the data protection act but also a strict moral code of conduct.  Developed Vetted means we have been security cleared to the highest levels possible, reinforcing our intimate understanding and responsibility regarding security of information.

Based in the South West of England we provide both local and national services however unlike an awful lot of internet based surveillance and investigation companies Lateo Surveillance are not middle men; we do not farm out jobs to unknown contractors which means we can offer a personal service at the best possible prices.

www.lateosurveillance.co.uk

The tale is told throughout with honesty and humor, leaving the reader in no doubt about the seriousness of this particular role. After reading this book you will be left in no doubt that this job would only suit particular people and that these people risk a great deal by fulfilling this role – regardless of the varying degrees of backup in place on the jobs.

The author freely admits errors he made, the anxiety that he felt during certain operations and the affect that this had on his personal life. Quite often those that write novels do so through rose tinted glasses making out situations quite different from what actually happened, I never had that feeling whilst reading dry Powder.

This book will prove a bit of an eye opener for many, is an excellent read, will be difficult to put down and is highly recommended.

nmc

Company Profile

We are locally based Security Consultancy facilitating the needs of local businesses and individuals. We do not have an international team on a moments notice to move anywhere in the world but we do have a dedicated team in the North East of England with extensive experience across the sector. For further information about us please take a look at our website.

www.durham-investigations.co.uk

The D7000 has many pro features making it feel like a real pro model but for a fraction of the price. One of the many great things that I love about Nikon’s is that almost every lens from 1970 is compatible with the most up to date digital models. As you would expect, many of the new features such as auto focus will not work but if you are using the camera on the manual settings then good glass is good glass. For someone like me who is far from a pro shooter these older lens’ can offer a huge saving over the newer, more trick kit yet still provide excellent optics that allow me to get the ‘money shot’. A wise man once said to me, “it is not the arrows but the Indians”, well I am very much of the opinion that it is a combination of both!

nmc

Company Profile

We are locally based Security Consultancy facilitating the needs of local businesses and individuals. We do not have an international team on a moments notice to move anywhere in the world but we do have a dedicated team in the North East of England with extensive experience across the sector. For further information about us please take a look at our website.

www.durham-investigations.co.uk