The questions every caller asks first.

Yes, treated as privileged work product from the moment your intake arrives. Intake messages, working notes, and case files are handled in a secure and private manner end to end, and stay inside the practice's evidence environment.

Not on our own. Private-Eye provides forensic examination, not legal representation. But when an attorney engages us on your behalf (a Kovel-style engagement), our work product is covered by the attorney-client and work-product privileges. If privilege matters to your situation, we will recommend you engage counsel first and have them retain us.

For matters where you're the direct client, the work is still confidential, but it's not privileged in the legal sense.

No. The case studies on this site are illustrative examples, not real clients. No real client name has ever appeared in Private-Eye marketing and never will.

Case files are retained for two years under Texas law on encrypted storage, then destroyed under a documented destruction-of-evidence protocol. If you'd like physical evidence preserved in the lab beyond that window in case you or counsel need to come back for a related matter, that can be arranged in writing as part of the engagement. You can also request earlier destruction in writing at any time after the matter closes.

No. Recovery and forensic work happens only on assets that the engaging client legally owns or controls. Texas Penal Code §33.02 (Harmful Access by Computer) and 18 USC §1030 (the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act) are not negotiable. We will not take the engagement, regardless of context.

There are lawful paths for many of these situations: discovery in a divorce, an estate executor's authority, or a subpoena issued by counsel. We are happy to work within those once they're in place.

For individuals: a device you bought, with your name on the account, that you have physical control of. For executors: letters testamentary issued by a probate court. For businesses: a device on a documented inventory, used by an employee under a signed acceptable-use policy that addresses examination.

Edge cases (community property in divorce, BYOD devices in a workplace, parents and minor children) get a 15-minute scoping call before any engagement letter.

No. If a firm tells you they will, walk away. That work creates criminal exposure for both the investigator and the client. If you have grounds to believe a phone in your household is exfiltrating data (stalkerware, monitoring software installed without consent), that's a different and lawful engagement: an anti-stalkerware sweep on your own device.

Yes. We will testify in court when a matter calls for it, and it can be arranged as part of the engagement. Reports are written to be defensible on the stand, and our examiner's CV is available to counsel on request.

Short intake message → 30-minute scoping call within a day or two → engagement letter and NDA → evidence handover (drop-off, courier, or remote acquisition) → examination → written report. For most individual matters that's a 1-to-3-week arc. Active situations (ransomware, suspected stalkerware) compress that into 1–2 days, when available.

Active situations such as ransomware, an ongoing intrusion, or suspected stalkerware typically get underway within 1–2 days. Routine examinations and recovery work begin within a week.

Both, depending on the matter. Password recovery is mostly remote and can be done from a forensic image you ship us or hand off securely. For computer devices and most mobile work, we usually need physical access to the device itself, and anti-stalkerware sweeps and on-site collections also require it. Our team travels within Texas for in-person work; out-of-state on-site work is by exception.

A written examiner's report, a chain-of-custody log, any recovered data on media, and a verbal walk-through. For families and individuals the report is written in plain English with a technical appendix.

Three options: in-person drop-off in San Antonio, tracked courier with tamper-evident bags, a secure encrypted handoff for items you can already image yourself, or remote collection. Everything is sent and handled securely with chain-of-custody logging. For phones we almost always need the device itself, briefly, usually 24 to 72 hours.

Pricing is tier-based and scoped to the needs of the client, a smaller, focused recovery sits at a different tier than a standard examination or a complex litigation-grade matter. The practice is run lean specifically so it can stay affordable for individuals and small businesses, and the tier is always agreed up front so we can work within your budget. The engagement letter quotes a not-to-exceed ceiling so the meter doesn't run silently.

No. Forensic work has to be done the same way whether the client wins or loses; contingency creates an incentive structure that undermines that. We do offer payment plans for individual and family matters where the cost would otherwise be prohibitive.

The first 30-minute scoping call is free and obligation-free. After that, any time spent on the matter is billed. The scoping call is genuinely diagnostic. We will tell you honestly if your situation needs a forensic examiner at all, or whether it's better handled by counsel, IT, or law enforcement.

ACH, wire, or business check for retainers and milestone invoices. Credit card accepted for individual matters under $2,000. We don't accept cash, cryptocurrency, or third-party payors without disclosure.