Case Studies
Case Study 1: The “Ghost” Vendor Fraud
Location: Hinjewadi IT Park, Pune
Type: Corporate Internal Investigation
The Situation: A mid-sized software firm noticed a 15% discrepancy in their procurement budget over six months. Several invoices were being paid to a “Quality Logistics & Supplies” company for office peripherals that never seemed to arrive in full.
Investigation Methods & Finding Proof:
Forensic Accounting: Investigators audited the company’s digital ledgers and found that the vendor’s bank account was linked to a branch in a residential area of Pimpri-Chinchwad, rather than a commercial hub.
Site Visit & Surveillance: A team visited the registered address of the vendor, which turned out to be a small, locked apartment. They set up Static Surveillance for three days and observed only a junior accounts clerk from the IT firm entering the premises.
Digital Trail: Investigators cross-referenced the clerk’s official email metadata with the “vendor’s” invoices. They found matching timestamps and IP addresses, proving the clerk had created the invoices on his office laptop.
The Proof: High-resolution photos of the employee entering the “office” and a forensic report showing the digital breadcrumbs of the forged invoices.
Case Study 2: The Pre-Matrimonial “Double Life”
Location: Bandra & Juhu, Mumbai
Type: Personal / Pre-Matrimonial Verification
The Situation: A family was considering a high-profile proposal for their daughter. The groom-to-be claimed to be a senior VP at a global hedge fund in London, currently working remotely from a luxury villa in Juhu.
Investigation Methods & Finding Proof:
OSINT (Open Source Intelligence): Investigators searched international professional databases and found no record of the individual at the claimed hedge fund. Social media analysis showed him frequently tagging himself at luxury spots, but never at a workplace.
Mobile Surveillance (Shadowing): A team followed the subject’s vehicle (a rented luxury sedan) from Juhu to a middle-class housing society in Borivali.
Undercover Inquiry: An investigator posed as a delivery person at the Borivali address. Neighbors confirmed the subject actually lived there with his parents and had been unemployed for over a year.
The Proof: Surveillance footage of the subject returning to his actual residence in Borivali and an official “employment non-verification” letter from the HR department of the London firm.
Case Study 3: The Industrial Espionage Leak
Location: Chakan Industrial Area, Pune
Type: Intellectual Property (IP) Theft
The Situation: An automotive components manufacturer found that a competitor was launching a nearly identical prototype just weeks after their own internal design phase was completed. They suspected a senior engineer was leaking blueprints.
Investigation Methods & Finding Proof:
Bug Sweeping: Technicians performed a Technical Surveillance Counter-Measure (TSCM) sweep of the boardrooms and the lead engineer’s office. No physical bugs were found, but they detected unauthorized “hot-spotting” from a hidden device.
Digital Forensics: A deep dive into the company’s server logs revealed that large encrypted files were being uploaded to a personal cloud storage account during late-night hours.
Sting Operation: The agency advised the client to “leak” a fake, slightly flawed design to the suspect. Within 48 hours, the agency tracked the suspect meeting a representative from the rival firm at a cafe on FC Road.
The Proof: Hidden camera footage of the suspect handing over a decrypted USB drive and a digital log of the “flawed” file being transferred from his workstation.