Glossary
Investigation terms, explained.
Plain-language definitions of the terms of art that come up in professional investigations — from sub rosa and AOE/COE to beneficial ownership. The vocabulary OnTrial works in, defined clearly.
Definitions
Investigation terms and definitions
- Sub Rosa Surveillance
- Covert, lawful observation of a subject — typically an insurance claimant — to document their real-world physical activity against the restrictions they have claimed. “Sub rosa” means “in secret”: the subject is unaware, and findings are captured as timestamped video for evidentiary use.Learn more →
- AOE / COE
- Arising Out of Employment (AOE) and Course of Employment (COE) — the two-part test of whether a workers' compensation injury is compensable. AOE asks whether the work caused the injury; COE asks whether it occurred within the time, place, and circumstances of employment. An injury generally must satisfy both.Learn more →
- SIU (Special Investigations Unit)
- The team an insurer relies on to investigate claims that show signs of fraud. “SIU support” is the outside investigative work — surveillance, background research, canvassing, and recorded statements — that develops a red-flagged claim into a documented factual record.Learn more →
- EUO (Examination Under Oath)
- A formal, recorded questioning of an insured or claimant, taken under oath during the claims process before any lawsuit is filed. Carriers use it to test the validity of a claim; investigators support it with pre-EUO background, social-media, and field workups.
- Subrogation
- The right of an insurer that has paid a claim to step into the insured's position and recover that payment from the party actually responsible for the loss. Subrogation investigation identifies and documents the responsible third party to support recovery.
- Activity Check
- A short surveillance engagement that documents a subject's activity over a limited window — often used as a first step to confirm whether fuller sub rosa surveillance is warranted.Learn more →
- Canvass
- Systematic contact with neighbors, businesses, or potential witnesses around a scene or subject to develop information — for example, a neighborhood canvass to locate a witness, or a provider canvass in a fraud investigation.
- Pretext
- The use of a false or incomplete identity or purpose to obtain information. Pretexting to obtain protected financial or consumer information is prohibited by law (the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act); OnTrial relies on licensed, lawful methods and does not use prohibited pretext.
- Skip Trace
- The process of locating a person whose whereabouts are unknown — a debtor, witness, or subject — by developing and cross-referencing public records, databases, and open sources.Learn more →
- Pattern of Life
- An analysis of a subject's movements, routines, and dwell locations over time, built from device-level and open-source signals — used to corroborate or refute claimed restrictions, or to inform protective operations.Learn more →
- OSINT (Open-Source Intelligence)
- Information collected from publicly available sources — public records, websites, social media, and media — then analyzed and verified to answer an investigative question.
- Asset Search
- Identification of a subject's assets — real property, vehicles, business interests, financial accounts, judgments, liens, and cryptocurrency — typically for pre-litigation collectability analysis or post-judgment enforcement.Learn more →
- Background Investigation
- A multi-source, analyst-verified review of an individual's identity, criminal and civil history, litigation, employment, and reputation — distinct from an automated, unverified database “background check.”Learn more →
- Due Diligence
- Pre-transaction investigation of the people and entities behind a deal — identity, litigation, regulatory and watchlist exposure, adverse media, and beneficial ownership — so an investor or acquirer understands who they are dealing with before capital moves.Learn more →
- Adverse Media
- Negative news and public information about a subject — allegations, sanctions, litigation, or regulatory actions — surfaced and verified as part of a background or due-diligence workup.
- Beneficial Ownership
- The natural person or persons who ultimately own or control an entity, behind intermediate companies or nominees. Mapping beneficial ownership is central to enhanced due diligence and AML / KYC screening.
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