Loading this page
Private intelligence
A private intelligence agency for decisions that need evidence.
Blackout Intelligence is a UK private intelligence agency. We investigate, assess and advise for organisations and individuals who need facts they can rely on, and every finding is reported with its sources and its limits.
What it is
What a private intelligence agency does
A private intelligence agency is a company that gathers and analyses information for a client who has a decision to make. The question might be about a business partner, a supplier, an investment, a threat to people or property, or a dispute that needs the facts laid out before a board or a court is asked to act.
Blackout Intelligence works this way. We start from the question and what the answer is for, and we agree the scope, the lawful basis and the boundaries before any collection starts. Sources are named and graded for reliability, so each finding can be checked back to them.
We work within UK law and do not replace the police, a regulator or a court. Where a matter belongs with one of them, the work we do is about giving the client an honest picture of it, not standing in for the decision that is theirs to make.
What we offer
Seven services, each commissioned on its own scope.
- 01Intelligence & risk advisoryStrategic intelligence, OSINT, threat monitoring and decision-ready briefings from a UK private intelligence agency. Sources named and graded.Read the service
- 02Due diligence & background checksCorporate, individual and enhanced due diligence for investments, appointments and sensitive transactions, from a UK private intelligence agency.Read the service
- 03Private & corporate investigationsDiscreet, proportionate investigations into fraud, identity questions, missing-person enquiries and complex disputes, carried out within the law.Read the service
- 04Surveillance & field operationsIntelligence-led observation, carried out only where lawful, necessary and proportionate, with carefully documented operational reporting.Read the service
- 05Security, protection & CCTVProtective planning, corporate and residential security, CCTV, event risk and executive protection support, from a UK private intelligence agency.Read the service
- 06TSCM & technical securityTechnical surveillance countermeasures, RF analysis and specialist sweeps for sensitive environments, from a UK private intelligence agency.Read the service
- 07AI governance & AgentAuditAudit-oriented AI assurance, agent oversight, workflow traceability and evidence-led governance, from a UK private intelligence agency.Read the service
How a commission runs
Four steps, from the question to a finding you can check.
Brief
You bring the question. We agree what the answer is for before anything else.
Scope and lawful basis
We agree the scope, the lawful basis and the boundaries before any collection starts.
Collection and grading
Sources are examined, named and graded for reliability, so each finding can be checked back to them.
Findings and limits
Findings are reported with their limits stated. Human judgement is shown, not hidden.
Questions
What people ask before they commission one.
- What is a private intelligence agency?
- A private intelligence agency gathers and analyses information for a client who has to decide something: about a business partner, a supplier, an investment, a threat or a dispute. It works from lawful, disclosed methods, and it reports each finding with its sources and its limits.
- Is it lawful to commission a private intelligence agency in the UK?
- Yes, when the work stays within UK law. Before any collection starts we agree the scope, the lawful basis and the boundaries. Our privacy policy and data processing terms are published on this site.
- How are findings graded?
- Each source is named and graded for reliability, and each finding is reported with its limits. Our grading follows NATO STANAG 2511 and ICD 203.
- How do I start a commission?
- Start with the question you need answered. We agree what the answer is for before anything else, and nothing is collected until the scope and the lawful basis are settled.
- What kinds of work do you do?
- Intelligence and risk advisory, due diligence and background checks, private and corporate investigations, surveillance and field operations, protection, security and CCTV, technical surveillance countermeasures (TSCM), and AI governance.
- How do I make a confidential enquiry?
- Use the contact page. Enquiries are handled in confidence, and you can say what you need to know and what the answer is for.
Bring us the question.
Start with what you need to know and what it is for. We agree the scope and the lawful basis before anything else.