How we stay on the right side of the law
An investigation is only worth running if it holds. This page sets out the legal framework we work inside, how we handle personal information, and how to raise a compliance question with us.
Trio-Data Special Services (Pty) Ltd is a South African corporate-investigation and security firm, registered as company 2013/068495/07 and operating from Bellville, Cape Town. We have worked in this field since 1989.
The standard we hold ourselves to
How you investigate decides whether the case survives. A rushed or poorly documented response can turn a genuine loss into an unfair-dismissal finding, and an unlawful method creates a second legal problem on top of the first. Four principles govern every matter we take:
- Lawful. We stay within POPIA and RICA. Monitoring must be proportional and serve a genuine business need.
- Proportional. The intrusiveness of the method matches the seriousness of the suspicion, and no more.
- Documented. Decisions, steps and evidence are recorded with a clear chain of custody.
- Confidential. We protect the case and the people in it. Tipping off a subject destroys evidence and invites claims.
Personal information (POPIA)
Investigations involve personal information, often about people who do not know they are being investigated. We treat that as the serious responsibility it is. Our processing is purpose-limited: we collect what the mandate requires, use it for that mandate, and do not retain it beyond what the engagement and the law require.
- We collect personal information for a defined mandate and use it for that mandate only.
- Access is limited to the people working the matter.
- Findings are shared with the client who holds the mandate, and with no one else, unless the law requires otherwise.
Our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy set out how information is handled, including through this website.
Interception and monitoring (RICA)
Any monitoring or covert method must be proportional, serve a genuine business need, and stay away from places carrying a reasonable expectation of privacy. Unlawful interception of communications under RICA is a criminal offence carrying a fine of up to R2 million or ten years' imprisonment. We will not take a mandate that requires us to cross that line, and we will tell you if what you are asking for does.
Fair process (Labour Relations Act)
Where our work feeds a disciplinary process, the employee must be given a fair opportunity to respond, in line with the Labour Relations Act and the organisation's own disciplinary code. Our findings are documented to an evidentiary standard - a report a chairperson, the CCMA or a court could follow - rather than merely enough to satisfy an internal view. A polygraph result carries corroborative value only, and can never be the sole basis for a dismissal.
Industry registration
The private security industry in South Africa is regulated by the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (PSIRA). A credible firm can produce a current registration number on request, and you should ask any firm you are considering for theirs and verify it before you appoint them. Ours is available on request - contact us and we will provide it.
Raising a compliance question
If you have a question about how we handle information, how a matter was conducted, or a concern you would like looked at, contact us directly at office@triodatacape.co.za or +27 21 949 4440. Compliance questions are handled by a director, not a call centre.
This page is general information about how we work, not legal advice. Every matter turns on its own facts.