What are Smart Cities? QOTD, Serving Evasive Defendants, Real Life Process Serving, Top 5 myths about Private Investigators

In this episode we cover topics such as:-

1- The pros and cons of Smart Cities;

2- Question Of The Day;

3- How we Serve an Evasive Defendant with Court Documents;

4- Real Life Process Serving;

5- Debunking the lies about being a Private Investigator.

Got a question for our podcast or do you need to contact Simon and the Down Under Investigations team? Simply email info@downunderinvestigations.com or call 1300849007 or check out www.downunderinvestigations.com

Transcript

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Speaker 1 0:00

Welcome to season three and another episode of Down Under Investigations, the Truth You Are About To Hear. From Simon, our host who has well over 20 years experience in the private investigation industry. Simon leads a team at down under investigations who are committed to professionalism, integrity, and their ability to get results for their clients. Our podcast will open up the truth about the world of private investigation, discussing real life case studies, the latest news, cutting edge surveillance, and skip tracing techniques, plus legal issues and support. So stay with us as we join Simon. Now

Speaker 2 0:36

Have you heard about the phenomenon around the world called smart cities? These smart cities are popping up all over the world and now particularly in Australia. A smart city is an urban area that uses advanced technologies and data with the aim to enhance the quality of life of its residents , while also optimizing urban services and operations in Australia. Smart cities have become an increasingly popular concept as more and more cities are incorporating new technologies to improve their infrastructure and services. One example of a smart city in Australia is Adelaide. Adelaide is currently implementing a range of smart city initiatives, including a smart lighting system that uses motion sensors to save energy smart parking system that allows drivers to find available parking spots. Simply using a mobile app and a waste management system that uses sensors to monitor rubbish levels in public bins and that it alerts the waste collection services when the bins need to be emptied. Another example of a smart city in Australia is the Gold Coast. The Gold Coast is currently implementing a range of initiatives aimed at making the city more sustainable and livable, such as a smart water metering system that helps residents monitor their water usage and a smart transport system that uses real-time data to improve traffic flow. The benefits of smart cities in Australia are many. They can help reduce traffic congestion, improve public safety, enhance the quality of life of residents, reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions. Smart cities can also lead to economic benefits such as businesses are more likely to invest in cities with advanced infrastructure and services. However, there are also some challenges to implementing smart city initiatives in Australia. One of the biggest challenges is the cost of these technologies, and many of them require significant upfront investment. There are also great concerns around privacy, data and security as the collection and analysis of such large amounts of data can create new risks, cameras are set up right around each of these smart cities using facial recognition and automatic number plates scanning to keep track of residents, citizens, and their locations. Many people feel this is a form of being watched by big brother as their trust in the government diminishes and no , it's not just those with something to hide or those committing criminal acts that should be concerned. Everyday . Ordinary citizens have spoken out about their feelings that privacy is being invaded by this data being captured. They're also concerned about the security of this data, whether it can be hacked or stolen by overseas or other agents. So whether you are for or against the concept, smart cities are becoming an increasingly common practice in Australia. As more and more cities look to incorporate new technologies to improve their infrastructure and services, there's challenges to implement these initiatives and fears of data being used for bad purposes. The benefits of cities such as these are many and they have the potential to improve the quality of life of residents while also driving economic growth. How do you feel about smart cities? What's your thoughts? Are you worried or do you think this is a good thing? Why not drop us an email with your thoughts? It's time for our question of the day, which comes from Stephanie in Parramatta. Stephanie asks, how do you serve someone who doesn't wanna be served with court papers? Well, Stephanie, we are experienced at what we do and we've been doing this for many, many years. We deal with evasive defendants often Now, serving legal papers can be a challenging task, especially when the person willing to serve is evasive. However, we can use several effective tactics to ensure that legal papers are served promptly and efficiently. Firstly, one of the most effective ways to serve legal papers when someone's evasive is through surveillance. We simply keep a close eye on the individual and their movements and determine the best time and place to serve papers and may require patience and persistence. But with the right approach, we can be effective to get the documents served. We may serve them when they're out at the shops. We may serve them when they're putting petrol in their vehicle. We may serve them when they're at their workplace , uh, or just at a time when we know that they're gonna be home. Another way to effectively get someone served is through a personal approach, and this may involve posing as some sort of delivery person or a salesperson in order to gain access to the individual to serve the papers. It's a bit more challenging and it requires, we're skilled at acting and deception initially, but it can be highly effective when done correctly. And of course this will only be used when we know that the defendant is evasive or has made attempts to avoid service. Another way is by using technology and gathering background information. Technology's a valuable tool for serving legal papers on invasives individuals. Process servers can use social media, email and other digital platforms to locate the individual and serve the papers. This approach can be especially useful if the individual is moved or is difficult to locate through traditional means. Getting background information on the person does set things up easily for us to be able to serve them at the right place at the right time. Another way that we can get an evasive person served is simply through substituted service. The courts often allow service to be affected by post or by leaving them at an address provider . We can prove that the address is a legitimate address and that they'll receive the documents and there must be a court order made to say so. So if all other methods have failed, that's one way is using substituted service, getting the individual served by leaving the documents with a family member or a housemate. It's only allowed in certain circumstances and we must follow specific legal guidelines to ensure that the papers are served effectively. We absolutely believe that the best way to get documents served and papers served on an evasive individual is to hire a professional process server. Professional process server has the skills, experience and resources to serve legal papers effectively, even when the individual is evasive. We can utilize all of the methods that I've just mentioned as well as other specialized techniques to ensure that papers are served promptly and correctly. Serving papers on an evasive individual can be a challenging task, but it is nowhere near impossible by using surveillance personal approach, technology, getting background information, you know, resorting to substituted service. When hire a professional process server , you can know and be certain that your papers will be served effectively, properly and your case can move forward as smoothly and quickly as possible. Thanks, Stephanie from Paramatta. Your uh, question has been answered. Thank you for the question of the day your prize is on its way to you. Thank you very much.

Speaker 1 8:11

Do you have a question for Simon and the team at down under Investigations, we are running a questions of the day competition. If your question gets answered by Simon on the podcast, we will send you a prize value at a hundred dollars. To send in your question, simply use the contact page on our website at www.downinvestigations.comoremailinfodowninvestigations.com.

Speaker 3 8:39

Good morning . Document arriving at the address around 7:00 AM We know , uh, this defendants going to be evasive . Um , the clients come to us cause they've had issues. Um, the law firm's had issues serving him with papers and so it's our job to , uh, get basical get resolved . Um , we regard his home address a searches and research and we are certain that he lives there. Um , it's just a matter of time before we get him served. Um , just gotta keep this morning until he leaves and then , uh, approach him and get him served . Um , we we're gonna to do a very discreet manner cause we know that he's likely to be evasive and try and avoid services. So , Alright , so I'm just , uh, barking around the corner from the address. I can see his property. I can see , um, his garage door. I can't see the front, very front of his property. I know where the gates are through the past and um, yeah, I know exactly where he , um, we'll pull out from his garage where we believe his vehicle's parked at the moment and I know where he'll drive to and he's got big block gates , so we can't actually approach the front door or the garage or anything. So we gotta wait till he comes to the driveway. Um , sort of work out that I've got enough time to the car, Parker I am and make my way to the gate. Once I see the garage doors start opening , just discreetly start walking along the side of his property towards the gate and try and time that the gates open. Just as he's , um, getting to the gates about exit the gates . Obviously gonna keep the documents pretty hidden and just , uh, act very discreet as if I'm just walking past. It's probably the only way to get this guy served , um, from whole reports and from what , uh, um, the lawyers told us , um, the issues they've had in the past. So yeah , that's the plan. Just have to wait to see. So I'm parked with that view that I just described earlier. Um, we've seen a light come on inside the property still , uh, not, not quite after , uh, break a day. So just , uh, hanging out to see some movement. All right , garage door going . I have to , uh, start the walk . This bloody cold . Uh , it's definitely his vehicle coming towards the gate. Uh , sorry . Sorry mate. Yeah , hey , are you , um,

Speaker 4 12:49

Is

Speaker 3 12:50

That you mate? Um, great, we've got these , uh, court documents for you. Thank you very much. Uh , you've been served. Make sure you do something about 'em . Uh , you've got 21 days. Thank you. Cheers outta there . Got him too easy. Just had to get up early enough and , uh, set him up a bit. So , yeah, all good. Another job done. Let's get outta here. <laugh> . So another one knocked off. Um, good thing with that one is , uh, I did have a colleague parked just down and across the road with a view of the gate who took video footage of the whole thing. Um, we like to record serves on most occasions, especially if we know that the person, my serving's known to be evasive, just so that if they try and say, oh , I never got the documents we produce , the audio, the video , um, my audio, my agent's video, and , um, that just knocks it outta the park that he's been served. So , um, yeah, we're , uh, very happy with that result. I , there's been many, many attempts made by other agents. We've got it first go. Um, just simply getting up early enough and just being a bit smarter. It's always good when you're aware that they're gonna be evasive. You just don't know sometimes when you knock on a door how they're gonna behave or if they've got high gates, if they're actually gonna respond to someone at the , um, property or how they're gonna respond. So yeah, no great result. Very happy. And um, now I'll go back to the office. Swear our affidavits have service and let the client know they'll be very, very happy, no doubt.

Speaker 2 15:08

Alrighty, it's now time for our top five list for this podcast. Today we're gonna talk about the top five myths about private investigators. Private investigation is an industry that is often shroud in mystery and secrecy. It's an industry that most people have misconceptions about thanks in parts of the way it's been portrayed in movies and on TV shows. But we're now gonna take a close look at some of the most common myths about private investigation in Australia. Myth number one, private investigators are always breaking the law. This is perhaps the most persistent myth about private investigators. The truth is that private investigators do and must operate within the bounds of the law. They're required to follow strict ethical guidelines. In fact, many private investigators work closely with law enforcement and legal professionals to gather evidence that can be used in court. See , a private investigator knows that if they don't do the right thing , they could be knocked, have their door knocked on by police very quickly and they can face charges. Not only that, but they can lose their livelihood, their business, their license, everything. All right , myth number two. Private investigators only work on infidelity cases. Sure, infidelity cases are certainly a common type of investigation. Prior investigators work on a wide range of cases. They may investigate insurance fraud, perform background checks, conduct surveillance for business or real estate , uh, help locate missing persons, take statements and serve documents. Private investigators are often called upon to help solve complex problems that require specialized skills and expertise. And that's the great thing about being a private investigator and all the investigators that are in my world. We all love the fact that every single day can be different. There can be different files, different things to think about, different ways to get a result. Uh , it's all very interesting and every day and every file is slightly different. Nothing's ever the same. Myth number three about private investigators is that private investigators can access anyone's personal information. Sure, private investigators do have access to certain types of information, such as public records and court documents. They're not able to access certain private information without a legitimate reason. Private investigators are bound by strict privacy laws and must obtain permission and authorization before accessing certain sensitive information. If the information's out there and it's in the public domain, a great investigator can always find that information. We always think to ourselves, who has that information that we need? And under what circumstances would they give us that information? And if we go into an investigation trying to obtain information with that background and that mindset, we generally will get a great result. Here's myth number four. Private investigators only work for corporations and wealthy people. Yes, private investigators do work for corporations and wealthy individuals, but we also work for everyday people. Private investigators can be hired by anyone who needs their services regardless of their income level. Private investigators can be a valuable resource for people who are dealing with personal difficult situations such as divorce or child custody battles. Anyone can access a private investigator under the right circumstances and prices are variable. So you do want to get a few quotes. You do wanna look around because some will charge a lot more than others for the same result. And here's myth number five. Private investigators can solve any problem. We like to think so. However, we can only solve certain types of problems. We can't solve everything. Private investigators need to work within the boundaries of the law. And there's certain situations where we NA may simply not be able to help. Additionally, some problems require other types of professionals such as lawyers or mental health professionals. We'll often meet with a client who needs certain things done or has a certain situation ahead of them and we will straightaway refer 'em to the police. We'll see that yes, there's been a criminal offense that's occurred and they are the victim and they need to go to police instead of to a private investigator. Say in conclusion, private investigation is definitely a complex and important field that is often misunderstood. By dispelling these myths, we can gain a better understanding of the important work that pride investigators do and the value that we can bring to individuals and to society as a whole, particularly to lawyers and law firms. We

Speaker 1 19:51

Would really appreciate if you would take the time to subscribe, rate and review this podcast. Please also check out our social media on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. If you'd like to get in touch with Simon and the down under investigation team for any reason, please check out our website at www.downunderinvestigations.com. All call 1 308 4 9 0 0 7 or email info down investigations.com. Thanks for listening.