Tracking has been used by man throughout history to find food and other humans. No one walks on this planet without leaving evidence such as footprints, tracks, or, as trackers call it, sign. Almost anyone can learn to track or see “sign”. It is only a matter of letting your brain interpret what it is that your eyes are already seeing.

Tracking has significantly changed the way we do business in Search and Rescue, Law Enforcement, Military, and Security. It has been shown how tracking not only minimizes the area to be searched for missing persons, but it is the most successful method. Law Enforcement has found that by getting back to very basic investigation methodology, looking at the ground, that many cases are solved much more quickly. The military is saving lives by being able to determine enemy movement and minimize evidence of their own presence. And security agencies are better equipped to determine breaches of their systems.

Universal Tracking Services (UTS) Inc. was established in 1991. The purpose of this endeavor was to formally establish a tracking training program, one that would be certified for purposes of validating a resource that can be used by various disciplines to find where people have been by using footprint evidence or sign. Search and Rescue, Law Enforcement, Military, and Security personnel all find benefit from the use of tracking to better know where someone has been or is going. UTS has incorporated the experience and expertise of professionals in the tracking community to formulate the program presented in this manual.

UTS has developed this program to enable persons to become skilled in tracking at various levels of expertise depending on one’s commitment. UTS provides this training to allow individuals and groups to become successful in locating person(s) of interest.

UTS is committed to providing the best training possible that will give everyone involved the positive use of tracking the tools, knowledge and skills needed for successful conclusions.