Let’s take a closer look at some of the most common myths—and the reality behind them:

Myth #1: Public Records Are Enough

Public records are a great starting point, but they don’t tell the whole story. Many significant developments never make it into court filings or government databases. News articles can surface details about business deals, legal disputes, or regulatory issues that haven’t yet entered official records—or may never appear there at all. They help fill in the blanks and uncover leads you might otherwise miss.

Myth #2: News Sources Are Just Fluff

Some see news as too soft to be useful in an investigation. But solid reporting can reveal a lot—how someone responds to pressure, how they handle setbacks, and what others say about them. That kind of detail matters. You’ll also find images, graphics, and maps that add helpful context to your findings.

Myth #3: Online News Can’t Be Trusted

It’s true that misinformation is out there, but that doesn’t mean all online news is unreliable. The key is to evaluate your sources carefully. Ask yourself: Is this source reputable? Are the facts verifiable? Premium databases like LexisNexis and Factiva include vetted news sources with editorial oversight. And once you develop a system for evaluating what you find, online news becomes a powerful part of your toolbox.

Myth #4: Google Covers It All

Google is a great place to start, but it’s not the finish line. Many valuable articles—especially older content or trade publications—won’t show up in a basic search. That’s where news databases and specialized sources come in. A layered search strategy helps you catch what others miss.

Myth #5: Only Negative News Matters

Yes, red flags are important—but so is seeing the full picture. Positive coverage can highlight accomplishments, community involvement, and leadership qualities that matter just as much. Balanced reporting helps you avoid confirmation bias and make more informed decisions.

Myth #6: AI Can Do It for Me

GenAI tools like ChatGPT can help with brainstorming or analysis, but they don’t replace solid research. These tools aren’t built for real-time, comprehensive news searching. They can point you in a direction, but you still need to verify, cross-check, and dig into the details using multiple trusted sources.

Myth #7: News Research Takes Too Much Time

It doesn’t have to. A strategic approach to news searching—starting broad, refining keywords, and using filters—can actually save time. Tools like alerts and monitoring services also keep you updated without constant manual searching.

The reality: is that news sources help fill critical gaps in your investigations. When done right, news research:

• Reveals information you won’t find in public records
• Provides leads and helps with verification
• Adds personality, behavior, and context
• Keeps you current on trends and developments
• Strengthens your findings with another layer of intelligence

Don’t let these myths limit your investigations. With the right strategies and tools, news sources can add depth and insight that your clients will appreciate. The more complete the picture, the better the decisions—and that’s what due diligence is all about.

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But sometimes we expect too much from these records, so it’s important to understand that they have their limits. Here’s a look at some of the things that you typically won’t find in a business registration filing:

The answers to all your questions

Business registrations can provide clues and perhaps answers to some of your questions, such as where a company is registered, the names of the registered agent, and other bits of data, but think of them as more of a starting point for additional research rather than having THE answer.

Future plans

Business registrations cover the past and the present—incorporation date, director changes, status, and the like. You won’t find strategic plans, expansion goals, or projections for future performance. These forward-looking statements are typically found in separate business plans or investor presentations.

Internal disputes or litigation history

While major legal events might be disclosed in SEC filings, court records, news reports, or other public channels, routine internal disputes or minor litigation cases are not typically found within standard business registration documents.

Day-to-day operational details

Business filings primarily focus on legal structure and compliance. You won’t find granular information about daily operations, such as marketing strategies, supply chain logistics, or internal management practices. These details are considered internal affairs and are generally not public information.

Comprehensive financial data

You definitely won’t find detailed financials like income statements, balance sheets, or cash flow reports. These private documents are usually for internal use, tax purposes, or reporting to specific regulatory bodies in certain industries.

Trade secrets and intellectual property

Businesses often rely on proprietary information, such as formulas, processes, and customer lists to maintain a competitive edge, and you’ll never find that in registration filings. Also, details about patents and trademarks are are registered separately with intellectual property offices, not within general business filings.

Detailed ownership breakdown

While filings generally identify the owners or key members of a business (but not always!), the exact percentage of ownership or equity distribution is not usually included. You might be able to uncover this information through other sources, though.

Specific business locations

In most jurisdictions the registered business address is included in the registration record, but filings may not list all the locations where a business operates. This is especially true for companies with multiple branches or facilities.

Employee information

Business registration filings do not include details about employees beyond perhaps listing the directors or registered agents. Employee salaries, positions, or personal data is often confidential, but might be found through competitive intelligence.

Management biographies

Filings might list the names and addresses of directors and officers, but you won’t find detailed biographies or employment histories. This information could be available through other sources like LinkedIn or company websites, but it’s not a standard component of registration filings.

If you’re relying on business registrations for your research or investigations, it’s important to understand their limitations. Remember that they’re a great starting point and will offer clues for additional research and analysis.

Learn more about what business registrations do include, their challenges, and tips for research through one of my online courses.

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What are UCC filings?

UCC filings are legal documents that record security interests in personal property. When a person or business borrows money and uses personal property such as equipment or inventory as collateral, a security interest is created. This interest is then filed with the appropriate state agency, usually the Secretary of State. The purpose of a UCC filing is to allow the creditor to notify other creditors that the property is used for collateral and establish the creditor’s right to the property in case of default.

What information do UCC filings contain?

UCC filings typically contain the following information, although a lot depends on the jurisdiction: Debtor names and addresses, Creditor names and addresses, description of the property used as collateral, filing date, and expiration date. Note that, when an individual owns multiple companies, lenders often require that all or some of the companies are included as debtors. This makes these forms especially useful for identifying related firms. Also, you can spot partner names and other related individuals.

Types of UCC filings

Specific forms and procedures for UCC filings can vary from state to state, and these are the two main types of forms that you’ll see when conducting UCC searches.

UCC-1 Financing Statement – The most common type of filing, this is the initial filing of a financing statement. It allows a lender to announce a lien on an asset to secure a loan.

UCC-3 Financing Statement Amendment – These are not stand-alone statements and are used to file a termination, assignment, continuation, and party or collateral changes that affect the original UCC Financing Statement.

Challenges for research

While UCC filings can be a valuable resource,–like all public records–there are some challenges associated with researching them. These include:

Multiple Jurisdictions – A person or business may may be listed on UCC statements in multiple states, making it difficult to conduct a comprehensive search.

Name Variations – Individuals or businesses may use different names or aliases, which can complicate the search process.

Filing Errors – Mistakes or inaccuracies in filings and database entries can make it difficult to find relevant information.

Lag time – Filings may not be posted or included in databases immediately after they are created, so sometimes the records are not current.

Tips for research

To overcome these challenges and make the most of UCC filings, investigators should follow these tips:

Gather known information- Find as many name variations, aliases, entities, and locations as possible. Use all this information in your searches and add new information to the mix as you find it.

Use professional databases – Many vendors, including LexisNexis, TLO, Tracers, and others, collect UCC filings from multiple jurisdictions. That makes it easier to conduct broad searches, in case you don’t know the states in which these statements are filed.

Use multiple sources – While professional databases come in handy for searching multiple jurisdictions, they often contain errors. Misfiled and dropped records make it difficult to be accurate in your searches.

Verify at the source – The only way to be sure that you have accurate information is to search the records in the Secretary of State databases. Sometimes you even need to pick up the phone or search manual records. You can’t trust the aggregated sources to get it right.

By understanding the value of UCC filings and following these tips, investigators can use this powerful tool to gather valuable information and answer client questions. What are your favorite tips for finding and using UCC filings?

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Recorded documents are documents that are filed with a public office such as a county recorder, usually to provide a traceable chain of title for real estate and property transactions. There are more than 100 types of recorded documents, including deeds, mortgages, liens, easements, maps, and UCC filings. Vital records such as birth certificates, marriage licenses, divorce decrees, and death certificates, are also considered recorded documents

Typically, a document is recorded to ensure their authenticity and legal standing. Doing this helps prevent fraud, settle disputes, and inform the public. For researchers and investigators, this means they contain lots of valuable intelligence that can be used for due diligence, litigation, judgment enforcement, fraud investigations, and more. Names, dates, descriptions, and other nuggets contained in these legal documents make it worth learning how to find and use them quickly and effectively.

Here are some of my top tips for working with and avoiding the challenges of recorded documents:

Know your sources and when to use them
When you know the property or business location, use direct sources like the county recorder’s office. This is the official source. Sometimes , though, we don’t know locations, so that’s when it’s a good idea to cast a wider net and search many locations at once using an aggregator, a source that collects records from multiple direct sources. For public records, these might include LexisNexis, Tracers, IDICore, and other fee-based products.

Always verify at the official source
The aggregators come in handy for broad searches, but they are only a starting point. They don’t contain official records, sometimes there may be data-entry errors, and you can’t be sure the aggregator has collected all the records. That’s why you need to verify and obtain official copies at the original source. Keep in mind that, while you may be able to search records online, in some jurisdictions their online search sites are not certified, so you still may need to go in person for official documents.

Know where to look
This is where it gets tough. Recorded documents can be found in a number of different places. They may even be in two places. It all depends on local regulations. You’ll also find that different jurisdictions have different names for the same document. Many are kept on the county level with the clerk or the recorder. Others might be on the state level at the Secretary of State’s office or the Department of Health. Some states are moving towards a unified system for recorded documents, but, in most places, they’re scattered. A good rule of thumb is to start at the county level and try Googling it: jefferson county colorado deed search–but often the best approach is to pick up the phone and ask.

Recorded documents can be a goldmine for information about people, properties, and businesses. Unfortunately, searching and retrieving them can be frustrating and time consuming. To learn more about recorded documents and best practices for searching, check out my new online course and others on my training page.

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In the first case, when faced with a known topic, we have our standard sources, and we usually know where to start. Every so often, though, we’re working with a client in a new industry, or maybe we’re starting to work in a new one. In these cases, we’re in unfamiliar territory, and we don’t know where to start. What can we do?

In these situations, we have two goals:

1. Gather some background information
2. Identify the key resources

But, how do we accomplish these tasks when we’ve never done this type of research? How do we navigate this new information landscape?

First, it’s worth noting that–like most kinds of research–we won’t find answers in just one place. And Google can only go just so far.

Researching a new topic requires a process, one that takes us to multiple places, gradually discovering new information and/or clues about where to find new information. It’s about piecing our findings together to come up with the best, most reliable starting points for new research.

After spending a little time with Google or other general purpose search engine, it’s a good idea to visit some other sources that can help us learn about new topics and identify starting points for research.

Here are some of my current favorites to use when I’m researching a new topic:

Wikipedia – Yes, I know its limitations for deeper research, but for a top-level view of a new topic and maybe some leads to new sources, Wikipedia does the job well. Of course, results depend on the subject and the amount of interest, so sometimes there’s not much there. Again, it’s just one of many places to look, so keep going.

LibGuides – University librarians like to create topical research or study guides, sometimes called LibGuides. They often contain links only available to their students, but many include open sources (recommended by a university librarian!) and a brief overview of the topic. Look for these guides by searching something like this:

[your topic] library (guide OR libguide) site:edu

Generative AI – As professional researchers, we need to use ChatGPT and other GenAI tools wisely. One thing they’re good for is creating a list of authoritative sources that cover a particular topic–keeping in mind that GenAI tools have their limitations and should be used in combination with other sources.

Associations – One of the first questions to ask when researching a new topic is “Who cares?” Who cares enough to compile information on a particular topic and talk about it? Professional associations do, and their websites often include blogs, articles, and lists of experts. If it’s not online, a phone call could speed up the process.

Our networks – Connections that we’ve created and nurtured over time through LinkedIn and in-person meetings offer a wealth of information about all kinds of topics. Most connections are happy to share what they know and can be especially helpful with emerging industries or other topics that may not have a lot of online coverage.

Researching a new topic is more involved than those times when we have some experience. Try these resources for a top-level view and some starting points for research. Let me know how they work for you and if you have any others to add to the list.

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Unlike many other investigators, I don’t use comprehensive reports for all my cases. For some, they’re essential. But I only use these reports when I need them, and always with extreme caution. Here’s why:

It takes you another step away from the source

As it is, when you use a database that gathers records from multiple sources (an aggregator) – whether it’s a news story, tax lien, or property tax assessment – it takes you away from your source document. That adds time and room for error. Data entry, missed records, lag time, you name it. Something’s bound to happen in the process that will affect the integrity of your results. Now comes the comprehensive report, which, as a compilation, takes you even further from the source. With that comes a new set of possible errors and missing records. I recently learned about a great example of this issue in a PI email discussion thread. Colleague Jordan Smith shared that, in one database, he found out the comprehensive report only searches criminal records by SSN, which means any records in that same database with redacted SSNs won’t show up. You can find them, though, if you just run a separate criminal search by name or other identifier.

It’s created by a machine

In addition to the errors that you’re bound to see when using aggregated sources, a comprehensive report is created by an algorithm, with no human interaction or quality control. If you haven’t already done it, take a look at your own comprehensive report, and you’ll be surprised by what’s there – and maybe by what’s not. For example, when spouses jointly apply for credit, SSNs become muddled and records for one appear on the other’s report. For our investigations, I frequently find tax liens that I know have been released, but it doesn’t show up. Also, I often get way too much information, with reports that can run more than 100 pages. That’s when some human intervention comes in handy. Run separately, I can limit my searches or filter results to show just what I need, without the rest of the noise.

It only includes U.S. information

In our investigations, many of our subjects are U.S.-based. But many are not, and more than a few hide assets overseas. Again, with a comprehensive report, you’re limited to what’s in one particular database, which likely won’t include global sources. These require going beyond the comprehensive and taking advantage of specialized databases, keeping in mind that many countries have stricter privacy laws than the U.S. That’s why it pays to tap into your global investigative connections, while also managing client expectations about availability of non-U.S. information.

A useful tool, the comprehensive report is essential for some investigations. But it may be easier – and cheaper – to run your searches separately, with better results. And remember to never, ever trust what’s in a comprehensive report. For any investigation, it’s only the starting point.

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What are some things you can’t find online?

Human intelligence (HUMINT) – This involves going directly to the people who may have the answers you need. As competitive-intelligence expert Ben Gilad puts it, “Only human sources can provide commentary, opinion, feelings, intuition, emotions, and commitment.” Including HUMINT adds color and depth to our reports, and helps us fill the gaps.

What’s waiting to be posted – It takes people, time, and money to add a public record or article to a website after it’s been created, and sometimes there’s not much of that to go around. So, the property deed record you’d like to see? It may be sitting in someone’s in basket, or the agency that creates those records has made the decision to cut back on availability.

Redacted records – For people in certain professions (e.g., law enforcement, court system, etc.), exposing home addresses or other personal information through online records can be be risky. Many jurisdictions have responded by redacting records.The entire record might be missing or just a part of it, and it can be a problem for those of us with legitimate reasons for needing that information.

Non-public, personal information – When it comes to Social Security Numbers, driver’s license information, banking records, and other data protected by privacy laws, you definitely won’t find these on the open web. This is one of the advantages of working with a professional investigator, since, with a legitimate use, certain information may be available through specialized (and restricted) sources.

The story behind the story – With anything you find online, there’s usually a backstory. For a recent due diligence investigation I verified our subject’s degree through the usual channels. After speaking with their university graduate supervisor, though, I learned that he was considered the “best and brightest” in the professor’s long career of working with PhD-level students. That was useful info, since my client was about to invest a lot of money in this individual’s new venture.

What can you do about missing information?

Don’t assume – Just because you can’t find it on the web, the answers may still exist somewhere. In someone’s brain, to-do pile, or filing cabinet. Remember that online research is a first pass. The next step is to pick up the phone. You can cover a lot of ground by making some calls, and I’ve discovered that people are more than happy to point me in the right direction.

Explore alternatives – The answers may not come from the questions you or your client thought to ask. Is there another way to get to the same place? For example, instead of asking for banking records, which, with few exceptions, you won’t be able to (legally) obtain, try to get a sense of someone’s finances through open sources such as public records and social media. No clues from your subject’s social media? Try their spouse’s profile.

Hire a professional investigator – A PI license is essential for access to certain databases, especially those with personal, non-public information. PIs are also trained in identifying the best sources for every situation, eliciting information from others, and knowing what’s legal and what’s not (buying banking records online is not).

Online searching is a great place to start. For in-depth coverage, though, take some time to step away from the computer and find what’s missing.

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Not a day goes by without searching online news, and I always include this step in our background investigations–for several reasons:

Find what’s not in public records – While public records can reveal a lot about a person or company, there’s a lot missing. In a recent example, the property tax record described several acres of rural land with mineral rights. That’s it. In the news, we learned that our subject, who’s avoided paying on a judgment by claiming poverty, made significant sums of money after an oil strike.

News adds “color” – One due diligence client refers to the news as the “color” in our reports. It’s where we’ve learned about all the bar fights involving one of their executives, and it’s where we find out about the good that someone does during their spare time. News completes the profile.

Because it’s there – As a professional researcher or investigator, you want to do the best work for your clients. Adding the news to the mix creates a more well-rounded report, and clients appreciate when you can deliver the hard-to-find answers to their questions.

But don’t take just my word for it. Everyone’s work is different, so I recently reached out to my LinkedIn connections, and they responded with their usual generosity and insights. Here are the reasons and the examples they shared, which illustrate when and–most importantly–why they search online news:

Profile building:
Find leads
Verify or fill gaps in self-reported professional experience
Identify business partners, regulators

Staying up-to-date:
New technology, laws, security gaps, trends, impending problems, solutions
Identify common schemes and develop strategies for audits/investigations
Monitoring what’s public about you/your clients and your/their companies.

Compliance:
Monitoring adverse news for AML programs
Enhanced Due Diligence in KYC (verify client identity & additional risks)
For watch lists, news can help identify individuals

When you need to learn as much as you can about companies and individuals, don’t skip online news searching. You never know what you could be missing.

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Online public records don’t contain everything, so, depending on your level of investigation – and your level of risk – you may need to dig deeper. Maybe through a phone call or a trip to county assessor’s office .

Sometimes, though, it’s the best we can do. We may not have the time or money to search physical records, and sometimes the level of risk doesn’t warrant the cost.

When working with online public records, investigators need to be prepared for dealing with missing information. To avoid problems, we especially need to know what’s missing and why it matters.

What’s missing?

Any online access
Not all agencies have the funds or the personnel to post their records online. You may find some but not all records, and sometimes, you’ll find none. Due to the cost of Americans With Disabilities Act compliance, many have decided not to go online at all. And, through exceptions to their public records access laws, jurisdictions may decide not to add certain records to an online database.

Current, historical, or accurate information
Sometimes there’s a gap between the time a record is created and when it appears in the database. It could be weeks or months, so you may have to use other means to locate the most up-to-date information. Some records might be removed after a certain amount of time, and they could be dropped altogether or moved to a different database. Also, data entry errors lead to incorrect spellings, skipped entries, and other problems.

Partial records
For privacy protection, some agencies redact or omit identifiers such as name or address. For example, in Los Angeles County you won’t find names in online property records; you can’t search by name, and the names won’t be in the online record. In Hennepin County, Minnesota, they don’t allow searching by name, but they do provide names in the online record. And in Jefferson County, Colorado, you can search by name and view names online. Three large, major counties with different policies about what’s included and what’s not. Finally, most jurisdictions don’t include addresses and other identifiers for individuals in law enforcement or other high-profile and high-risk professions.

Full documents
When searching public records, you’re generally not searching the actual documents. For example, with property records, you search the records index, which includes just basic information that you can use to locate the full document. With court records, you’re probably searching the docket, a summary of the case and proceedings, which requires another step to access full documents.

Why it matters

Just because something is considered a public record, it doesn’t mean it’s always publicly available or available online. Since every jurisdiction’s different, investigators need to learn the intricacies of online searching and downloading. What’s public and what’s not? What records require manual or phone research?

If you don’t find what you need, don’t be too sure it doesn’t exist. Try different spellings, start looking more broadly before narrowing your search, and – when in doubt – pick up the phone and ask.

Make sure to manage expectations – yours and your client’s. Explain limitations of online records ahead of time so everyone knows what to expect, and always add disclaimers to your reports in case they forget.

Verify everything. Check for identifiers, so you can determine if this record is about your subject or not. Try different databases, including some of the fee-based aggregators, because you may not be aware of all the jurisdictions to cover.

Keep learning. These sources and their rules for access constantly change. Look for links to FAQs, manuals, or other guidance, and follow the experts on social media to stay current.

Don’t fall into the “everything’s online” trap. Online public records are not complete, and, in the investigative business, we need to know what’s what’s included, and – more importantly – what’s missing.

To learn more about how to search online public records like a pro, check out my online courses.

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Public records are useful, but searching can be tedious and time-consuming, and our findings affect people’s lives and livelihoods. So, in addition to using quality information, we need to gather it efficiently.

That’s why it pays to know your sources. Whatever you’re using for searching public records – free or fee-based, aggregated or direct – it helps to know some basics: 

How does it work? – Learn about the available tools for quickly targeting what’s relevant and downloading it into a useful format.

What’s included? – Are you getting a full record or just a brief entry with basic information? What dates, regions, jurisdictions does the database cover?

What’s missing? – What does the database exclude? Is the coverage limited in any way (date ranges? redacted records? legal limitations?)

How accurate is the info? – Try checking your own name to see if the database has it right. Then learn who recommends this source. If possible, look for your source’s sources.

Can I use it? – I’ve encountered a few agreements with databases vendors that prohibit me from sharing the information I buy with anyone, including clients and team members, which makes it useless to me.

Part of knowing your sources is learning what sources to avoid. So, watch out for misinformation, low-value content, high costs, wasted time and money, and, when searching online public records, avoid these types of sources:

1. The “one-and-only” – Every so often I get a call from a database vendor, and they try to convince me that their product is all I need. That’s my cue to end the conversation, because there’s no such thing as the one-and-only source
2. Web scraping – Sometimes it pays to add the human touch. Sites that curate and organize the information add more value. Web-scraping, where a machine does the work of gathering what’s on the web, provides lower value.
3. Consumer-oriented sites – If you’re serious about your results (Remember, they affect lives), it pays to go professional. That means paying for some quality databases and knowing how to vet the information they offer.
4. Instant background checks – Again, low-value, since there’s nothing “instant” about a proper public records search. Searching public records requires preparation, a process, and some patience.
5. Universal background checks – Nope. There’s no such thing (see #1). No single database includes everything, and everything’s not online. Searching public records requires multiple sources – sometimes even at the courthouse or the county recorder’s office.
6. Online sources for banking and financial info – If a site offers someone’s financial details, just run. GLBA, or the Graham Leach Bliley Act, protects our financial records here in the U.S., so the seller hasn’t gathered the data legally. And nothing good comes of that.

Know your sources and know what sources to avoid. It can make a big difference to our clients, their clients – and our reputations.

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