Counterfeiting Investigation

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Counterfeit issues

What is a counterfeiting investigation?

A Counterfeiting Investigation will mostly start where there is:

  • fraudulent use of different forms of currency (fake currency, counterfeit bills)
  • fraudulent sale of commodities or knock-off products in order to profit from this transaction

What is counterfeiting?

When a counterfeiting act occurs or you suspect it did, this would consist of somebody imitating something authentic. It means there is an intent to steal, destroy, or replace the original item or artefact. Counterfeiters of fiat currency for example will want to use fake bills in illegal transactions. Other types of con artists will try to deceive you into believing that the fake is of equal or greater value than the real thing. Fake works of art are an example of this. Generally, counterfeit products are fakes or unauthorized replicas of a real product.

What is subject to counterfeiting & forgery?

Let’s take a look at a few examples of areas in which counterfeiting is rampant.

  • autographs
  • currency, paper money, fiat currency
  • certificates, important documents
  • clothing & fashion brand items
  • expensive handbags
  • shoes
  • pharmaceuticals / medicine
  • car parts
  • aircraft parts
  • watch brands
  • consumer electronics 
  • electronic parts
  • original software
  • works of art
  • gems stones
  • jewelry
  • historical objects
  • precious metals (gold, silver)
  • valuable toys
  • movies
  • computer-games
  • DVD movies, BluRay Disks
  • Music DVDs, records
  • electronic media, digital products
  • online data (now being sold on the dark web)

It is well known that organized crime has taken a big interest in this type of activity.

When do you need a counterfeiting investigation?

As a company or organization, you are required to pursue the protection of your brand, trademarks, and patents as much as you can. In many cases, counterfeiters start with making fake company logos & brands, ultimately leading to copyright issues, patent violations, and trademark infringements. What is your intellectual property worth to you and how do you protect it?

Questions asked during a counterfeiting investigation?

  • What is the extent of counterfeiting?
  • What is the value of of the fraude?
  • Is the counterfeit incident part of an organized counterfeiting ring?
  • Which type of fake goods are affected?
  • Is the case related to fraudulent documents (passports, driver’s licenses, ID / IC – identification cards, travel documents)?

AR INTELL can assist you in the investigation of fake currency, fake works of art, fake jewelry or unauthentic documents, or products that have for intent to replicate (copy) the original copyrighted, trademarked, or patented ones.  

Inquiry Counterfeit Investigation

Brand Protection

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Brand Protection AR INTELL

What is Brand Protection about ?

In general brand protection is the process and set of actions that a right holder will undertake in order to prevent third parties from using its intellectual property without permission of the brand owners

Not protecting your brand might cause:

  • substantial loss of revenue
  • damage to brand equity
  • damage or loss reputation and trust of the market.

Inquiry into Brand Protection & Brand Investigation

Corporate Intelligence Services & Corporate Investigations

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Corporate Investigations

What are corporate intelligence services & investigations?

Corporate Intelligence Services & Investigations will focus on:

How can AR INTELL assist you?

AR INTELL Corporate Intelligence will help you with the protection of your international companies. This is important when you expand your business networks, based on new opportunities. . Typically this will increase your business risk and exposure as an organization.  We will provide you with independent research and risk analysis.

Inquiry Corporate Intelligence Services

Mobile Device Forensics

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mobile device forensics

AR INTELL is an expert in Mobile Device Forensics.

 
Our Mobile Forensic team is specialized in the recovery of digital evidence. We can retrieve data from any mobile device. AR INTELL adheres to forensic standards and secure practices.
 

Mobile Device analysis is applied on:

  • mobile phones
  • other digital devices with internal memory
  • communication enabled devices – anything with a “communications” chip (different range of RF)
  • PDA handheld devices
  • smart phones, 2G 3G, 4G, 5G.
  • IoT devices (LoRa, Internet of Things, ZigBee, etc…)
  • GPS devices & GPS trackers
  • tablet computers, android tablets, Apple Ipad etc.
  • Any device that stores data in a digital format
  • keyboards
  • SD-cards and other media-storage
  • cloud connected storage
  • smart watches
  • sports & fitness trackers
 
Daily all of us are immersed in billions of connected mobile devices. These electronics collect all sorts of data. Firstly we carry these little machines around all the time. Secondly they collect and upload lot’s of information live to the cloud and social media. Companies pay for these data. Big data analytics is the main drive behind this. Hacker groups also try to obtain this information in other ways. You don’t want your data to be sold on the dark web. 
 

So which data-points is your smartphone collecting?

 
This depends on many factors. First of all the type of smartphone.  2nd; your mobile apps 3: your security and privacy settings. Here are a few issues to look into:
 
  • most apps collect more information than is necessary
  • phones and apps can record you in secret
  • location tracking can be activated at any time
  • hackers can take full control of your phone
  • your phone data can be downloaded and sold on the dark web
  • most people never read the terms of service agreements and privacy policies
  • apps can activate a phone’s microphone and leak audio data
  • passwords, email addresses, and GPS information are sometimes stored unencrypted
  • high-profile apps mostly do large-scale data collection (big data)
  • spy apps could be snooping on your chat conversations
  • your privacy might be at risk
  • confidential information stored in your phone might leak out
  • your GPS location can be tracked without consent or permission
  • social media and shopping e-commerce apps track your buying preferences and personal interests
  • your private images and messages might end up on social media or cloud-based storage
 
How to determine which apps you can trust? To which data does an app have access to? How to set up a proper security and data protection policy? How to apply hands-on security on your many devices? 

pile of smartphones

Mobile electronic devices hold interesting information, digital footprints of a subject it’s activities, whereabouts and communications with others. Hence during an forensic investigation it is key to obtain this information legally and make it part of the evidence, to be presented in the court later on. It’s important to work within our given mandate.

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Computer & Digital Forensics

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Computer Forensics AR INTELL

Our INTELL Private Investigators & Digital Forensic Experts are well versed in Computer forensics  or computer forensic science. This is a part of the wider digital forensic science. We specialize in finding, preserving and analyzing evidence which is stored in computer-systems, computer networks, online cloud systems and cloud storage servers, laptops, tablet, mobile phones, smart phones and different types of digital storage media (hard drives, USB-disk, flash drives etc…). As computer forensics we will examine in detail the digital carriers / storage devices. The purpose of a forensic investigator is:

  • identification of data
  • preserve data
  • recover the data
  • analyze the data
  • report and present the facts
  • interpretation of the facts
  • prepare the data for use in litigation, court & legal procedures.
  • create a legal audit trail (who manipulated the data)

Inquiry Computer Forensics

Undercover Operations – Covert Operations

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Covert Operations

Covert Operations

The activity of going “undercover” or operating undercover requires that you are not detected by the target that you observe or pull surveillance on. So in that perspective, you will disguise or mask your own identity or maybe even use an assumed identity. This is done so you would gain some sort of trust in the individual or organization that you are targeting. Eventually, this might allow you to acquire confidential data, access a secure environment, or get the trust of targeted individuals.

This info is then exfiltrated and gathered as legal evidence. Undercover agents will typically perform this type of covert or undercover operation.

Covert Investigations

At AR INTELL we have trained covert operations specialists and covert operators who are able to conduct these kinds of undercover missions, sometimes called “secret” investigations which require the highest level of confidentiality and discretion.

Our covert investigation – under operation will consist typically of the following elements: 

  • the whole setup and preparation is done secretly and discreetly
  • the operation or investigation itself is conducted in a covert and undercover manner
  • undercover agents receive special training and special guidance or assistance
  • special surveillance and counter surveillance technology is applied
Inquiry Covert Operations

Life Style Check – Life Style Investigation on future marriage partner or business partners

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private investigation into life style

What is a Lifestyle Check or Lifestyle Investigation?

This is an investigation that focusses on creating a complete private investigation profile on a specific target. This includes a complete background information and extended surveillance. If need be the associates of the subject will also be undergoing a background check.

Typically the following investigative techniques will be used:

  • online database searches
  • photographic or video surveillance
  • undercover observation of the subject and environment
  • checking of relevant people involved with the subject
  • document the activities of the different associates
  • detailed reports of the investigation

Inquiry for Life Style Check - Life Style Investigation

Private Investigators – The Netherlands

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AR INTELL Netherlands Private Investigators

With an office in Amsterdam in the Netherlands, AR INTELL has positioned itself strategically to assist in private investigations in Western Europe or more specifically in the Netherlands and surrounding European Countries. Being able to do a private international investigation with the correct partners across borders is a key factor when you need to collect evidence or facts where and when needed. AR INTELL can assist you for private investigations in these regions in the Netherlands: 

AR INTELL Private Investigators Netherlands

Drenthe – Emmen, Flevoland – Almere, Friesland, Gelderland – Nijmegen, Groningen, Limburg, North Brabant – Eindhoven, North Holland – Amsterdam, Overijssel Enschede, South Holland – Rotterdam, Utrecht, Zeeland – Terneuzen.

Request Free Assessment Private Investigators Netherlands

Cohabitation & Fraud Claims

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Private Investigator for Cohabitation and Love Affairs

What is cohabitation?

Cohabitation is an arrangement where two people are not married but live together. They are often involved in a romantic or sexually intimate relationship on a long-term or permanent basis. Such arrangements have become increasingly common in Western countries since the late 20th century, being led by changing social views, especially regarding marriage, gender roles and religion. (source: wikipedia).

What is a Cohabitation Investigation?

A Cohabitation Investigation is an investigation which has as purpose to find out if a person receiving court ordered alimony payments is cohabiting with a new partner, thereby this might lead to terminating the requirement of future alimony payments.

Why is a cohabitation investigation – fraud claim investigation useful?

  • do you pay alimony to an ex-spouse who is living with a new partner?
  • how can you legally end your alimony payments?
  • how to uncover the right evidence to prove your case in a court of law
  • how long has your spouse been living with the new partner?
  • is there a deadline by which the investigation needs to be delivering the right info?

AR INTELL can contribute with a thorough investigation:

  • collect high quality relevant evidence (to admit to the court)
  • compile documents that suggest 2 persons live together
  • make videos or pictures to show that the ex-spouse is engaged in a marital type relationship
  • discreet collection of evidence

Inquiry Cohabitation Investigation - Fraud Claims

Private Investigators North America – USA

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Private Detectives North America

In the event of having to conduct an International Private Investigation or Security Risk Assessment in the United States of America (USA), North – America; AR INTELL is able to assist you in these matters.

United States Private Investigations AR INTELL

We have a regional presence with our office in New York. Our network of trusted operators and affiliated private detectives can assist you. We can conduct different types of investigations in many target markets across the USA its business sectors an industries.

AR INTELL North America - USA Private Investigators

We can cover all USA states:

Alabama Montgomery Birmingham, Alaska Juneau Anchorage, Arizona Phoenix, Arkansas Little Rock, California Sacramento Los Angeles, Colorado Denver, Connecticut Hartford Bridgeport, Delaware Dover Wilmington, Florida Tallahassee Jacksonville, Georgia Atlanta, Hawaii Honolulu, Idaho Boise, Illinois Springfield Chicago, Indiana Indianapolis, Iowa Des Moines, Kansas Topeka Wichita, Kentucky Frankfort Louisville, Louisiana Baton Rouge New Orleans, Maine Augusta Portland, Maryland Annapolis Baltimore, Massachusetts[D] Boston, Michigan Lansing Detroit, Minnesota St. Paul Minneapolis, Mississippi Jackson, Missouri Jefferson City Kansas City, Montana Helena Billings, Nebraska Lincoln Omaha, Nevada Carson City Las Vegas, New Hampshire Concord Manchester, New Jersey Trenton Newark, New Mexico Santa Fe Albuquerque, New York Albany New York City, North Carolina Raleigh Charlotte, North Dakota Bismarck Fargo, Ohio Columbus, Oklahoma Oklahoma City, Oregon Salem Portland, Pennsylvania Harrisburg Philadelphia, Rhode Island Providence, South Carolina Columbia Charleston, South Dakota Pierre Sioux Falls, Tennessee Nashville,
Texas Austin Houston, Utah Salt Lake City, Vermont Montpelier Burlington, Virginia Richmond Virginia Beach, Washington Olympia Seattle, West Virginia Charleston, Wisconsin Madison Milwaukee, Wyoming Cheyenne.

Request Free Consultation or Assessment - North America - USA Private Investigators