CPI Best Practices & Standard Procedures 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under ASIS International standards, a CPI's investigative report should PRIMARILY contain:
- Opinions and conclusions without supporting facts
- Only information favorable to the client
- Factual observations, evidence collected, and source information (Correct answer)
- Speculation about subjects' future behavior
Correct answer: Factual observations, evidence collected, and source information
ASIS standards require investigative reports to document factual observations, evidence, and sources, avoiding unsupported opinions.
Question 2: When is it appropriate for an investigator to make a citizen's arrest?
- Whenever the investigator believes a crime occurred, even without witnessing it
- Only when a felony is committed in the investigator's presence and jurisdictional law allows it (Correct answer)
- At any time a misdemeanor is suspected
- Whenever a client requests it
Correct answer: Only when a felony is committed in the investigator's presence and jurisdictional law allows it
Citizen's arrests are legally justified in most jurisdictions only when a felony is witnessed directly and local law explicitly permits it.
Question 3: What is the BEST practice when an investigation involves potential criminal activity by the client?
- Continue the assignment as directed by the client
- Conceal the findings to protect the client relationship
- Withdraw from the case and consult legal counsel (Correct answer)
- Notify the media immediately
Correct answer: Withdraw from the case and consult legal counsel
When an investigator discovers the client may be involved in criminal activity, withdrawing and seeking legal advice protects the investigator from complicity.
Question 4: Proper file management in investigative practice requires that case files be:
- Shared openly among all agency staff for transparency
- Retained according to a defined retention schedule and secured against unauthorized access (Correct answer)
- Destroyed immediately after case closure to protect privacy
- Stored only in digital format with no backups
Correct answer: Retained according to a defined retention schedule and secured against unauthorized access
Case files must follow a documented retention schedule and be secured to protect confidentiality and meet potential legal discovery requirements.
Question 5: Which statement BEST describes the use of pretext in an investigation?
- Pretext is always illegal and must never be used
- Pretext is permitted when it does not involve fraud, misrepresentation of law enforcement status, or violate specific laws (Correct answer)
- Pretext requires prior judicial approval in all cases
- Pretext is only permitted when investigating government employees
Correct answer: Pretext is permitted when it does not involve fraud, misrepresentation of law enforcement status, or violate specific laws
Investigators may use pretext as long as they do not impersonate law enforcement, commit fraud, or violate applicable statutes.
Question 6: When collecting digital evidence, an investigator's FIRST priority should be to:
- Immediately analyze the data on the original device
- Create a forensic image and preserve the original without alteration (Correct answer)
- Delete irrelevant files to save storage space
- Share the raw device with the client for review
Correct answer: Create a forensic image and preserve the original without alteration
Creating a verified forensic image before any analysis preserves the original evidence and maintains its integrity for legal proceedings.
Question 7: An investigator assigned to a workers' compensation fraud case should avoid:
- Conducting surveillance in public spaces
- Using public records to verify employment history
- Following the claimant onto private property without consent (Correct answer)
- Photographing the subject in plain view
Correct answer: Following the claimant onto private property without consent
Entering private property without consent or legal authority constitutes trespass and can invalidate the investigation's findings.
CPI Best Practices & Standard Procedures 3
Under ASIS International standards, a CPI's investigative report should PRIMARILY contain: