Investigations: surveillance law, practice, public versus private 26
A client asks a Hawaii private detective to tap a spouse's telephone. Neither person on the calls would know or consent. How does HRS § 803-42 treat the interception?HRS § 803-42(a)
A client gives a Hawaii detective a recording that the detective knows came from an unlawful wiretap. Which act by the detective does HRS § 803-42(a) also punish?HRS § 803-42(a)(4)
A firm with no Hawaii license wants to bid on a contract for private detective services. What does HAR § 16-97-32 say?HAR § 16-97-32
A Hawaii detective agency walks away from a client's case partway through, with no reasonable or legal excuse. How does HAR § 16-97-46 treat this?HAR § 16-97-46
A Hawaii detective wants to put a mobile tracking device on a car. When does HRS § 803-42(a)(8) not require a search warrant or other order first?HRS § 803-42(a)(8)
A Hawaii investigator goes onto private land without permission in order to watch a person inside a private place. Which offense does HRS § 711-1111(1)(a) define?HRS § 711-1111(1)(a)
A Hawaii licensee learned confidential information while working for a client. Which later job does HAR § 16-97-8(a) forbid?HAR § 16-97-8(a)
Show all 66 questions (59 more)
Investigations: surveillance law, practice, public versus private, continued
A Hawaii licensee tells a client that surveillance was carried out on days when it was not. Which ground for discipline in HAR § 16-97-46 fits?HAR § 16-97-46
A hidden device is installed in a private place without consent. What moves the Hawaii offense from violation of privacy in the second degree to the first degree?HRS § 711-1110.9
An investigator intentionally gives the police a report about a crime, knowing the information in it is false. What does HRS § 710-1015 make of that?HRS § 710-1015
Besides the penalty for the misdemeanor, what may a Hawaii court order for a recording made in violation of HRS § 711-1111?HRS § 711-1111(4)
HAR § 16-97-12 requires each Hawaii licensee to keep a permanent place of business in the State. What does the rule say that is?HAR § 16-97-12
How does HRS § 463-1 define a "private detective" or "investigator"?HRS § 463-1
HRS § 710-1016.6 makes one form of pretending to be a law enforcement officer a class C felony. What is the added element?HRS § 710-1016.6
HRS § 711-1111(1)(d) bars recording devices in a private place, with one proviso about recording in public. Whom does the proviso say a person may record?HRS § 711-1111(1)(d)
HRS § 803-3 lets any person present arrest someone in the act of committing a crime. What wider case does HRS § 803-5 add for a Hawaii police officer?HRS § 803-5
In HRS § 711-1106.5, what is "nonconsensual contact"?HRS § 711-1106.5(3)
Is a reserve officer of a county police department eligible for a Hawaii license under HRS chapter 463?HAR § 16-97-8(b)
May a Hawaii detective agency collect money from a client before it has done any work?HAR § 16-97-18
Surveillance is one form of conduct named in harassment by stalking, HRS § 711-1106.5. Which other element must be present?HRS § 711-1106.5
Under which name may a Hawaii licensee solicit or transact business (HAR § 16-97-9)?HAR § 16-97-9
When does harassment by stalking become the class C felony of aggravated harassment by stalking under HRS § 711-1106.4?HRS § 711-1106.4
Which act is "unethical conduct" for a Hawaii licensee under HAR § 16-97-10?HAR § 16-97-10
Which paid work falls within the definition of "detective" in HAR § 16-97-2?HAR § 16-97-2
Which surveillance step is violation of privacy in the second degree under HRS § 711-1111(1)(e) when done without consent?HRS § 711-1111(1)(e)
Who is outside the definition of "detective" in HAR § 16-97-2?HAR § 16-97-2
Interview and interrogation 13
A Hawaii employer wants each worker questioned about a theft to take a polygraph or be fired. What does HRS § 378-26.5 provide?HRS § 378-26.5
A Hawaii investigator, not acting under color of law, records an interview that the investigator is conducting, without telling the witness. How does HRS § 803-42(b)(3)(A) treat the recording?HRS § 803-42(b)(3)(A)
A Hawaii store owner's agent holds a suspected shoplifter for questioning. Which condition is part of the affirmative defense in HRS § 707-722(3)?HRS § 707-722(3)
A witness gave an investigator a statement that conflicts with the witness's trial testimony. Under Rule 613(b), what must happen before extrinsic evidence of that prior statement is admissible?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 613 (HRS § 626-1)
An investigator offers a witness a benefit with intent to influence the testimony the witness will give in an official proceeding. What does HRS § 710-1070 call the offense?HRS § 710-1070
An investigator uses a threat against a person the investigator believes is about to be called as a witness, intending to influence the testimony. What grade of offense is intimidating a witness under HRS § 710-1071?HRS § 710-1071
Before a Hawaii employer may ask an employee whether the employee is willing to take a lie detector test, how must the employee be told that the test is voluntary?HRS § 378-26.5
How long does a Hawaii employee have to file a complaint with the department about an unlawful lie detector practice?HRS § 378-27.5
In an interview, an investigator intentionally urges a witness to stay away from a hearing the witness has been legally summoned to. Which Hawaii offense does HRS § 710-1072 define?HRS § 710-1072
What does HAR § 16-97-16(c) say about questioning a person whom a Hawaii private detective has arrested?HAR § 16-97-16(c)
What turns knowingly restraining another person into unlawful imprisonment in the first degree, a class C felony, under HRS § 707-721?HRS § 707-721
Which device besides the polygraph does HRS § 378-26 name in its definition of a "lie detector test"?HRS § 378-26
Whose lie detector tests fall outside Hawaii's employment lie detector law under HRS § 378-27?HRS § 378-27
Legal aspects: rules of evidence, laws and rules 12
A lay witness gives an opinion in a Hawaii court. Besides being helpful, what does Rule 701 require of the opinion?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 701 (HRS § 626-1)
An applicant fails the Hawaii private detective examination on two consecutive attempts. What does HAR § 16-97-41.1 provide?HAR § 16-97-41.1
An approved applicant becomes eligible for the Hawaii private detective examination and then does not sit for it. After how long is the application considered abandoned under HAR § 16-97-31?HAR § 16-97-31
An investigator looks at field notes to refresh memory while testifying in a Hawaii court. What is the adverse party entitled to under Rule 612?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 612 (HRS § 626-1)
An investigator works under a lawyer's direction on a client's case. Who is a "representative of the lawyer" under Rule 503 of the Hawaii Rules of Evidence?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 503 (HRS § 626-1)
An out-of-court statement is offered at a Hawaii trial to prove the truth of what it asserts. What does Rule 801 call it?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 801 (HRS § 626-1)
Besides passing the examination, what must an applicant for a Hawaii private detective license do under HAR § 16-97-26(d)?HAR § 16-97-26(d)
By what date must a Hawaii private detective pay the renewal fee to avoid automatic forfeiture of the license?HRS § 463-10(b)
How much investigational experience must an applicant for a Hawaii private detective license have under HRS § 463-6?HRS § 463-6(a)
Rule 401 defines "relevant evidence" for Hawaii courts. Which test does it set?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 401 (HRS § 626-1)
What bond must each Hawaii private detective licensee give to the board under HRS § 463-12?HRS § 463-12
What must be shown before a witness, such as an investigator, may testify to a matter under Rule 602 of the Hawaii Rules of Evidence?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 602 (HRS § 626-1)
Evidence: collecting and handling 9
A client entrusts property to a Hawaii licensee during a case. Which failure is a ground for discipline under HAR § 16-97-46(6)?HAR § 16-97-46
A person believes an investigation is pending and offers an object the person knows to be false, intending it to be used there. Which Hawaii offense does HRS § 710-1076 define?HRS § 710-1076
An investigator recorded a telephone call. Under Rule 901(b)(5) of the Hawaii Rules of Evidence, how may a voice on the recording be identified?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 901 (HRS § 626-1)
Case data are stored on a computer. What does Rule 1001 of the Hawaii Rules of Evidence treat as an "original"?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 1001 (HRS § 626-1)
The originals of a set of surveillance photographs have been lost. When does Rule 1004 of the Hawaii Rules of Evidence still bar other evidence of their contents?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 1004 (HRS § 626-1)
What counts as "physical evidence" for the Hawaii offense of tampering with or fabricating physical evidence?HRS § 710-1076
What satisfies the requirement of authentication under Rule 901(a) of the Hawaii Rules of Evidence?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 901 (HRS § 626-1)
Which act with a genuine document is tampering with physical evidence under HRS § 710-1076(1)(a), when done to impair its availability in a proceeding believed to be pending?HRS § 710-1076
Which circumstance keeps a duplicate out of evidence under Rule 1003 of the Hawaii Rules of Evidence?Hawaii Rules of Evidence, Rule 1003 (HRS § 626-1)
Investigator management 6
Chapter 396 is on the reference list for the Hawaii examination. What does HRS § 396-6(a) require every employer to furnish each employee?HRS § 396-6
For how many Hawaii agencies at most may one individual be the responsible principal under HAR § 16-97-7.2?HAR § 16-97-7.2
How does HRS § 463-6(b) have a Hawaii detective agency check the criminal history of a new investigative employee?HRS § 463-6(b)
How long must the responsible principal of a Hawaii agency keep the training records of a former employee under HAR § 16-97-7(b)(7)?HAR § 16-97-7(b)
What education must an investigative employee of a Hawaii detective agency have under HRS § 463-6(b)?HRS § 463-6(b)
Which subject is on the list of training that HAR § 16-97-7(b)(7) requires for the detective employees of a Hawaii agency?HAR § 16-97-7(b)
How this list was compiled: Our own questions, spread over the five sections of the content outline in the Candidate Information Bulletin for the Hawaii Private Detective - Principal examination, dated 11/18/2025 (https://test-takers.psiexams.com/api/content/bulletin/10692), which the Board of Private Detectives and Guards page on application deadlines and examination dates points to. They are written from Hawaii Revised Statutes chapter 463, Private Investigators and Guards (https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol10_Ch0436-0474/HRS0463/HRS_0463-.htm); Hawaii Administrative Rules, Title 16, chapter 97, in the Board's own file (https://cca.hawaii.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/har_97-c1.pdf); the Hawaii Rules of Evidence (HRS chapter 626); and HRS sections 803-5, 803-41 and 803-42, 711-1106.4, 711-1106.5, 711-1110.9 and 711-1111, 707-721 and 707-722, 710-1015, 710-1016.6, 710-1070 to 710-1072 and 710-1076, 378-26 to 378-27.5 and 396-6, each read on October 16, 2026 on the Hawaii State Legislature site. Each question names its section or rule and links to it. Licence: Own work. Every question, wrong choice and explanation was written for this site from the text of the law named under "source". Nothing comes from the Private Detective - Principal examination, the examination service, a sample test, a training course, a prep publisher or the two commercial textbooks the bulletin lists.
How it works
This unofficial Hawaii private investigator license practice test follows the five sections of the Private Detective - Principal examination: 66 of our own questions on the law behind each. Not affiliated with the Hawaii Board of Private Detectives and Guards.
Read the full guide
Where the questions come from
HRS chapter 463, the Board's rules in HAR chapter 16-97, the Hawaii Rules of Evidence, and the statutes on wiretaps, privacy, stalking, lie detector tests and witnesses. Each answer names its section.
What is left out
The examination also draws on two commercial textbooks of investigative technique. Nothing here is taken from them, so technique is not asked. HRS chapter 703, on justification and the use of force, is on the reference list and is not asked here.
A private detective shall not interrogate a person arrested or detained (HAR § 16-97-16).
A mobile tracking device needs a search warrant or other order, unless the owner of the property it is installed on consents (HRS § 803-42).
Renewal is due by June 30 of each even-numbered year, or the license is forfeited (HRS § 463-10).
Questions and answers
What is on the Hawaii private detective exam?
Five sections, by the candidate bulletin: Investigations 40%, Interview and Interrogation 20%, Legal Aspects 18%, Evidence 14% and Investigator Management 8%. This bank keeps those shares. Its references are HRS chapters 463, 703 and 396, HAR chapter 16-97 and two textbooks.
How many questions are on the Hawaii private investigator test?
80, with 120 minutes and a minimum passing score of 75%, according to the candidate bulletin dated 11/18/2025. Exam mode here is a half-length run: 40 questions in 60 minutes at the same 75%.
How do I become a private investigator in Hawaii?
Apply to the Board of Private Detectives and Guards: age 18, a high school education, the equivalent of four years of full-time investigational work, a $5,000 bond, the examination and an oral review before the Board (HRS § 463-6, HAR § 16-97-26).
What happens if I fail the Hawaii private detective exam twice?
After two consecutive failed attempts you may not sit again within ninety days of the last one. An applicant with no license within one year of filing reapplies as a new applicant (HAR § 16-97-41.1).
Can a private investigator record conversations in Hawaii?
Under HRS § 803-42 it is not unlawful for a person not acting under color of law to record a conversation he or she is a party to, unless done to commit a criminal or tortious act. Intercepting others' communications is a class C felony.