Six chapters specify the public records one needs to search to learn the background of an individual or organization as well as the techniques that facilitate more efficient research. These guidelines also discuss the problem presented by the professional con artist who moves to the area of the country where business is most active, the fact that almost all criminal history information is open to public scrutiny, the need to determine the worth of a potential business deal, ways to access computer files, and some "tricks of the trade." Examples accompany the guidelines. The book concludes with a recommendation to be creative and to develop one's own means of searching out the truth.