Skip Tracing 101: How to Find Someone Avoiding Detection

Have you ever tried to track someone down—only to realize they’ve gone out of their way to stay hidden? Whether it’s a former business partner, a missing heir, or even a relative who cut ties, finding people who don’t want to be found is no small task.

This process is called skip tracing, and while TV shows and crime dramas might make it look easy, the truth is much different. People today use every trick in the book to avoid detection—fake addresses, data broker removals, even disappearing from digital life altogether.

The good news? With the right investigative strategies, and especially with the help of a licensed private investigator, it’s still possible to locate someone—legally and ethically.

 
What Is Skip Tracing?

Skip tracing is the professional process of tracking down someone who is difficult to locate. The term comes from the idea of someone “skipping town” to avoid being found.

Skip tracing is not only used in criminal cases. In fact, most applications are tied to civil and legal matters, such as:

• Locating missing heirs or beneficiaries in probate cases.
• Serving court documents when someone is evading service.
• Tracking down debtors who’ve disappeared without paying.
• Finding witnesses for legal proceedings.
• Reuniting families in domestic or missing person cases.

Each of these situations has one thing in common: the person being sought has taken steps, whether intentionally or not, to make themselves hard to find.

 
How People Avoid Detection

Over the years, people have become more sophisticated at hiding. Let’s look at two of the most common tactics:

1. Using Alternate or “Proxy” Addresses
Some individuals list their address at someone else’s home—a friend, family member, or even a random acquaintance. Why?

• Mail Forwarding: By listing a different address, bills, legal papers, or even collections get sent elsewhere, throwing off the trail.
• Shielding Real Residence: This tactic helps mask their actual living location, making it harder for anyone to physically track them.
• Confusing Records: Public records might show multiple addresses tied to one name, creating a digital smokescreen.

For example, let’s say someone owes a large sum of money. Instead of listing their true residence, they might use their cousin’s address. When collection efforts begin, the trail leads investigators to the cousin’s home—not to them.

2. Using Data Broker Removals to Erase Their Digital Trail
Data brokers—companies that collect and sell personal information—have databases filled with addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and even purchasing habits. People who want to “disappear” often use services that opt them out of these broker databases.

While this sounds like a smart privacy move (and in some cases, it is), it also makes skip tracing extremely difficult for the average person. Once someone systematically removes themselves from these brokers, casual searches and consumer-level background checks turn up very little.

This is where the problem begins: you won’t be able to access the right data without professional tools.

 
Why You Can’t Do It Alone

Here’s the reality: if you try to locate someone on your own, you’ll hit a wall quickly. Google searches, social media digging, and even basic background check websites only get you so far.

But licensed private investigators like Easton Secure Solutions LLC have access to:

• Specialized databases that are restricted to law enforcement and licensed investigators.
• Legal investigative techniques that go beyond what the public can do.
  Field investigation skills—like surveillance or in-person interviews—that add real-world context to digital data.

More importantly, a PI operates within the law. There’s a huge difference between someone casually “playing detective” and a licensed professional who understands privacy laws, compliance, and courtroom admissibility.

 
Legal Applications of Skip Tracing

To really understand the value of hiring a PI, let’s break down some examples where skip tracing is crucial and legal:

1. Serving Court Papers
Imagine you need to serve divorce papers, but your spouse moved out and left no forwarding address. A PI can trace their movements legally so the case doesn’t stall.

2. Locating Witnesses
Attorneys often need to find witnesses who have changed numbers or moved. A PI can track them down so they can provide testimony.

3. Debt Collection Cases
Courts and financial institutions may need to locate debtors. PIs ensure the search is legal and verifiable.

4. Probate and Estate Cases
Heirs or beneficiaries sometimes vanish, but their presence is required for estate distribution. Skip tracing reconnects the dots.

5. Family Matters
From child support enforcement to reuniting estranged family members, skip tracing can bring resolution and peace of mind.

 
The Easton Secure Solutions Advantage

At Easton Secure Solutions LLC, we specialize in skip tracing across NYC and Long Island, and we also offer nationwide remote services. Our process combines:

• Advanced databases not available to the public.
• Human intelligence (HUMINT): field interviews, observation, and verification.
• Digital Analysis: analyzing social media, email traces, and online behavior.
• Legal compliance: ensuring every step stands up in court.

We’ve seen countless cases where people hit dead ends on their own, only to finally find answers with our help.

 
A Story That Shows the Difference

A client once came to us after months of trying to track down a former business partner who owed them money. This person had:

• Removed themselves from all major data brokers.
• Registered utilities at a friend’s address.
• Stopped using social media altogether.

Our team used cross-referenced databases, interviews, and discreet field checks to find the individual’s true residence. Within weeks, the client was able to proceed with legal action.

Without professional help, they admitted they would have never found him.

 
Why Hiring a Private Investigator Is the Smart Choice

Here’s the bottom line:

• People know how to hide—and the internet gives them plenty of tools.
• You don’t have the access—consumer background check sites simply don’t compare to professional investigative databases.
• Legal matters require legal proof—if you gather information improperly, it might not hold up in court.

Hiring a PI ensures that your search is thorough, legal, and effective.

Pricing & Service Packages

Here's a breakdown of our transparent, competitive pricing for person-locating services—so you know exactly what to expect:

• Basic Skip Trace: Subject search via advanced data aggregators; remote locate with dual address report.
  • $169 per subject
• Deep Skip Trace: Four-hour investigation: online research, proprietary databases, USPS checks (NCOA, ACS), DMV data, OSINT, court & incarceration searches, social media insights, utility checks, and a final report.
  • $399 per subject
• Premier Skip Trace: Everything in the “Deep” package, plus in-person locate, surveillance, witness interviews, and real-time alerts.
  • $105 per hour
• Person Locate – Remote: Ideal for welfare checks, reconnecting with friends or loved ones: remote locate with a 2-hour investigation and final report.
  • $199 per subject
• Missing Persons Investigation: Full investigation: in-person locate, surveillance, witness locating and interviews.
  • $100 per hour 

Note: Listed prices are guidelines and may vary depending on case complexity. All cases are priced fairly and assessed individually. 

 
Final Thoughts
Skip tracing isn’t about guesswork—it’s about combining data, experience, and investigative techniques to locate people who don’t want to be found. If you’re facing a situation like this, don’t waste time hitting dead ends. We provide In Person services in NYC and Long Island. Digital Investigations available in New York State as well as Nationwide.

👉 Let Easton Secure Solutions LLC help you get the answers you need.

☎️ Call us today: (516) 962-1267
✉️ Email: [email protected]
💻 Visit: https://eastonsecuresolutions.com
📅 Schedule a consultation: Book a 30-Min Call