What you need to know about skiptracing

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What happens when you need to find someone who does not want to be found? You may think this is not a situation you will ever find yourself in, however with 2,300 reports of Americans going missing every day, there’s an unfortunately high chance that you may be affected. It’s even more worrying when you consider the fact that most of the people that are reported missing are young adults and teenagers who are more likely to run into trouble when they go missing. When a situation like this occurs, the best thing to do is get help from a skiptracers.

What Is A Skiptracer?

Skiptracers are professionals who use a wide variety of information to track down a missing person. Skiptracing is a term that is derived by combining the “skip” from the phrase “skipping town” and tracing which relates to the tracking down of a person by using or ‘tracing’ the clues they’ve left behind.

There are several methods that a skiptracer can use to track down a missing person and which ones are used depend on the circumstances around the person’s disappearance and the amount of information that is available. All of the methods are reliant on the skiptracers gaining critical information about the missing target.

1.    Communications

Checking the missing person’s communication channels is usually one of the first things a skiptracer will do. This includes getting access to phone records and checking their recently dialed numbers, checking for any changes to their contact information as well as monitoring their recent social media posts and updates.

2.    Financials

The financial records of a missing person are often crucial when it comes to locating them. This can mean checking their transaction history as their recent purchases can help narrow down their possible location. Another thing skiptracers check is whether the target has any new credit card applications as this is something most missing persons do when they reach their new location.

3.    Employment

There are public and private databases available that will help a skiptracer determine whether the missing person has tried to apply for a job anywhere in the country which will then lead them to their current or recent location.

 

4.    Cross-reference Skiptracing

Cross-reference skiptracing is the practice of skiptracing a person or people who could be related to the missing person’s disappearance. This includes tracing roommates, colleagues or family members who may have information that could lead the skiptracer to their target.

Who Hires Skiptracers?

There are several reasons someone may need to hire a skiptracer.

1.    Families often hire skiptracers for help locating a missing relative or child who may be in danger.

2.    Skiptracers can be hired by debt collectors who are trying to track down dodgers.

3.    Repossessions agents who are trying to get their property back also utilize the services of a skiptracer.

4.    Skiptracers and private investigators often work together to gather as much information as possible on a target.

5.    Skiptracers are also hired by journalists who need their help tracking down an individual who may have crucial info for their latest scoop.

Why Are Skiptracers Necessary?

Skiptracers need to work with an astounding amount of information that can be overwhelming to an untrained person. Locating a missing person sometimes involves the skiptracing of multiple individuals and gathering a huge amount of intel which is then organized and cross-referenced leading the tracer to their target. There are cases that are so large that they require the services of several skiptracers to locate an individual.

When it comes to finding a missing person, information is by far the most valuable asset. Skiptracers have the experience and skills needed to both obtain the information and the ways to use it to locate the missing individual.