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    21 Things You've Always Wanted To Know About Private Investigators

    It's not as glamorous as it sounds.

    1. We spend a lot of time working on insurance fraud cases.

    2. And lots of private investigators actually specialise in work cover and injury claims.

    3. Lots of us used to work in the police force.

    4. And a lot of us are former shopping mall security guards.

    5. But a good way to get into the industry is to start off doing computer work for an existing agency.

    6. If you want to set up your own firm, you don't actually need a university degree.

    7. But if you want to work for an existing agency, studying something like Criminal Justice or Criminology won't hurt.

    8. Unlike the private investigators you see in films, our first jobs are never actually very glamourous.

    9. And even when we eventually start doing surveillance work, we spend a lot of time sitting in a car, waiting for something to happen.

    10. But at least we don't have to dress up for work.

    11. Sometimes, we have to pee in a teeny tiny container in our car.

    12. And we have to be really careful not to lose concentration, otherwise we could miss the action.

    13. Sadly, a lot of our time is spent following people who's partners suspect they're cheating.

    14. We can only film people when they are in public places.

    15. Our biggest expense is buying our own surveillance equipment.

    16. And we usually have to get our car windows tinted too.

    17. Sometimes we make fake Facebook pages with the sole intention to adding our subjects as friends.

    18. And some firms employ a dedicated group of people to work on social media investigations from the office.

    19. Being a private investigator is the dream job if you're very patient and you like spending time on your own.

    20. Despite what films would have you believe, we won't do absolutely anything to get the information our clients are after.

    21. And the best part of the job is undeniably the adrenaline rush you get when you finally find evidence for something you've suspected all along.