Ontario Private Investigator Practice Test 5

All 30 questions in this test

Every question and its answer choices. The correct answers and explanations appear when you take the test above.

1. Reviewing your notes, you find a wrong licence plate number. How do you correct it?

   1. Draw a line through the error and initial it
   2. Tear out the page and copy the notes again
   3. Leave it and fix it only in the final report
   4. Erase it completely and write the correct number

2. Surveillance could become criminal harassment under section 264 if the subject reasonably fears for their safety because you:

   1. Photograph their business sign from the street
   2. Repeatedly follow them from place to place
   3. Record their public activity from a parked car once
   4. Search land registry records for their home

3. Your file is missing the subject's date of birth before surveillance starts. What should you do?

   1. Ask the subject's neighbours for it
   2. Phone the subject pretending to be a pollster
   3. Start anyway and guess from the subject's looks
   4. Check the file or contact your office to confirm it

4. Under the Ontario Evidence Act, what notice must a party give before using a business record as evidence?

   1. At least seven days' notice to the other parties
   2. At least 24 hours' notice to the witness
   3. At least 30 days' notice to the court clerk
   4. No notice, since business records are always admissible

5. Which skill does the study guide link to acting under stress?

   1. Knowing how to write a business plan
   2. Knowing how to bill overtime correctly when a surveillance runs late
   3. Knowing how to repair a broken camera
   4. Knowing how to react if exposed during surveillance

6. Before going undercover in a workplace, which briefing topic does the study guide list?

   1. Who the supervisors and any known suspects are
   2. The client's annual profit and tax filings
   3. The home addresses of all the employees
   4. The salaries of the company's managers

7. After making a citizen's arrest, what must a private investigator do?

   1. Deliver the person to a peace officer as soon as possible
   2. Hold the person until a lawyer arrives to advise them
   3. Release the person after taking a written statement
   4. Take the person to the client's office for questioning

8. Why must private investigators understand the difference between indictable and summary conviction offences?

   1. Summary conviction offences must be reported to the Registrar within five days
   2. Only summary offences can be prosecuted in Ontario
   3. A citizen may arrest a person found committing an indictable offence
   4. Indictable offences are handled only by civil courts

9. Which of these courts is the highest court in Canada?

   1. The Federal Court of Appeal
   2. The Supreme Court of Canada
   3. The Tax Court of Canada
   4. The Ontario Court of Appeal

10. Which of these is an example of trace evidence?

    1. A surveillance video of the subject
    2. A signed witness statement
    3. A business invoice from a supplier
    4. Fibres from clothing found at the scene

11. Which detail should open every standard surveillance report?

    1. The investigator's opinion of the subject
    2. A summary of the subject's guilt
    3. The subject's name, file number, date and time
    4. The client's billing rate for the file

12. A witness testifies that she saw the accused strike the victim. What type of evidence is this?

    1. Direct evidence
    2. Opinion evidence
    3. Circumstantial evidence
    4. Hearsay evidence

13. A statement you are taking may amount to a confession. What must you avoid?

    1. Letting the person read the statement first
    2. Asking the person to initial each page
    3. Writing down the time the interview ended
    4. Any threat or promise of immunity

14. Under section 322 of the Criminal Code, when is theft committed?

    1. When something is taken fraudulently and without colour of right
    2. Only when the item taken is worth more than $5,000 and is sold afterwards
    3. Only when the item leaves the building
    4. Only when the owner is present and sees it

15. What kind of law is PIPEDA?

    1. An Ontario regulation on licence renewals
    2. A federal law on intercepting phone calls
    3. An Ontario law on access to records held by municipalities and boards
    4. A federal law on how businesses handle personal information

16. A client asks you, a licensed PI, to collect overdue accounts from tenants. What does the PSISA say?

    1. You may do it if you hold a dual licence
    2. You may do it if you identify yourself as a private investigator first
    3. A PI licensee must not act in the collection of accounts
    4. You may do it if the client is a licensed landlord

17. When should you write your investigative report after an interview?

    1. Immediately after the interview
    2. After the case goes to court
    3. At the end of the week with other reports
    4. Only if the client asks for one

18. Who must swear the Affidavit of Service after a document is served?

    1. The investigator who actually served the document
    2. The client's lawyer who drafted the document
    3. The person who received the document
    4. Any employee of the investigation agency

19. What is the minimum age to hold an individual private investigator licence in Ontario?

    1. 21 years old
    2. 19 years old
    3. 16 years old
    4. 18 years old

20. Which job title may a licensed private investigator use to describe their work?

    1. Law enforcement consultant
    2. Private detective
    3. Investigations officer
    4. Licensed private investigator

21. Which of these is a purpose of surveillance listed in the study guide?

    1. Issuing a trespass notice to the subject
    2. Gathering information before conducting an interview
    3. Collecting overdue debts from the subject
    4. Serving as the subject's personal bodyguard

22. While undercover for suspected theft, you see serious safety violations the client did not mention. What should you do?

    1. Fix them yourself without telling anyone
    2. Report them to the workers' union first
    3. Observe and report them along with the theft
    4. Ignore them, as they are outside your mandate

23. Which item may a private investigator carry as identification or a symbol of authority?

    1. A metal badge with the company logo
    2. A photo ID card reading Investigations Officer
    3. Only the licence issued under the PSISA
    4. A wallet badge that resembles a police shield

24. To serve a document, you must get inside an apartment building with a locked lobby. What applies?

    1. You may enter if you show your licence to the superintendent
    2. You may follow a resident in, since service is urgent
    3. Serving a court document overrides the building's rules
    4. You must still comply with the Trespass to Property Act

25. Which information can be collected without consent under the Regulations Specifying Publicly Available Information?

    1. Some publicly available records, such as certain judicial records
    2. A subject's bank statements obtained from a helpful teller at their branch
    3. Medical records requested from a family doctor
    4. Tax returns obtained from a former accountant

26. The person you must serve refuses to open the door. What is the best action?

    1. Slide the document under the door and leave
    2. Contact the client and explain the situation
    3. Tape the document to the door and photograph it
    4. Wait inside the building until they come out

27. What is a criss-cross directory, found at some public libraries?

    1. A register of licensed investigators and agencies, sorted by phone number
    2. A list of court cases sorted by judge
    3. Phone numbers listed in numerical order with subscriber names
    4. A map that shows where two roads cross

28. A client wants a credit check on a job applicant. According to the study guide, when can it be done?

    1. With the consent of the person being checked
    2. Only after the person has been hired
    3. Only with a warrant from a justice of the peace
    4. Whenever the client has a business reason

29. Before starting a locate or background investigation, what should you first establish with the client?

    1. A cover story for contacting neighbours
    2. A justifiable mandate for the investigation
    3. The number of hours the client will pay
    4. The subject's likely daily schedule

30. Maria holds both a security guard and a private investigator licence. What rule applies to her work?

    1. She may do both roles at once only on the same client's premises
    2. She cannot act as a guard and an investigator at the same time
    3. She must choose one licence and surrender the other within a year
    4. She needs written approval from the Registrar for each shift