# Skip Tracing **Entity class:** Concept or operational method **Domain:** Marketplace Entry Vocabulary ## Definition Investigation locates a subject through records, source research, and field verification. A contracted location product can combine database findings with dated photographs or other confirmation. ## Operational role Marketplace literacy connects names for work with the function being supplied and the credential admitting the participant. A prime, program of record, direct commission, disclosure channel, or contractor role has its own institutional meaning. Understanding those meanings helps a citizen find the appropriate door into useful service. **Architecture connections:** [[wiki/OSINT|OSINT]] · [[wiki/Intelligence Community|Intelligence Community]] · [[wiki/Citizen-Privateer|Citizen-Privateer]]. ## Relationships - **article-linked authority or contracting instrument:** [[wiki/Skip-Tracing Contracts|Skip-Tracing Contracts]]. - **article-linked mechanism or framework:** [[wiki/Location Verification|Location Verification]]. - **collection route:** [[collections/The Civilian Intelligence Marketplace|The Civilian Intelligence Marketplace]]. - **counterterrorism architecture:** [[collections/Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and the Intelligence Environment|Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and the Intelligence Environment]]. - **source article:** [[articles/The Coming Market for Civilian Spycraft|The Coming Market for Civilian Spycraft]]. ## Sources / Provenance - [[articles/The Coming Market for Civilian Spycraft#XIV. The Board Already Exists|The Coming Market for Civilian Spycraft — XIV. The Board Already Exists]] — October 2026 revision; immediate source for this entry’s place in the marketplace. - [American Immigration Council, ICE's Private Bounty Hunters Use AI to Track Immigrants (2026).](https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/blog/ice-bounty-hunters-use-ai-track-immigrants/) - [Scripps News, Small Companies Score Big Contracts to Search for Undocumented Immigrants (2026).](https://www.wcpo.com/investigations/ice-inc/small-companies-score-big-contracts-to-search-for-undocumented-immigrants)