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The differences between assets protection specialists and detectives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a detective has an average salary of $57,984, which is higher than the $42,374 average annual salary of an assets protection specialist.
The top three skills for an assets protection specialist include CCTV, physical security and exception reports. The most important skills for a detective are physical evidence, patrol, and law enforcement agencies.
| Assets Protection Specialist | Detective | |
| Yearly salary | $42,374 | $57,984 |
| Hourly rate | $20.37 | $27.88 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 83,267 | 56,521 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 42% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Average age | 33 | 44 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
An assets protection specialist is an individual who is responsible for implementing safety and environmental programs to their assigned store or multiple stores as well as prevent financial loss caused by theft and fraud. Asset protection specialists are required to monitor the store's physical security and audit electronic article surveillance. They also prepare accurate and detailed case reports and interact with law enforcement as well as testify in criminal and civil court actions. Asset protection specialists must also report any hazardous or unsafe condition to the manager on duty.
A detective is responsible for conducting in-depth investigations for criminal activities, potential threats, and other law-violating incidents, coordinating closely with law-enforcement agencies and crime intelligence analysts. Detectives often work on the field, gathering data and related evidence to support claims and connect the timeline of events. They keep an organized record of their findings for further validation before reporting it to the authority. A detective must have excellent investigative and critical-thinking skills, especially on solving puzzles and security solutions.
Assets protection specialists and detectives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Assets Protection Specialist | Detective | |
| Average salary | $42,374 | $57,984 |
| Salary range | Between $22,000 And $78,000 | Between $35,000 And $95,000 |
| Highest paying City | Arlington, VA | - |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | - |
| Best paying company | Credit Suisse | - |
| Best paying industry | Retail | - |
There are a few differences between an assets protection specialist and a detective in terms of educational background:
| Assets Protection Specialist | Detective | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 42% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Most common major | Criminal Justice | Criminal Justice |
| Most common college | California State University - Bakersfield | University of Arizona |
Here are the differences between assets protection specialists' and detectives' demographics:
| Assets Protection Specialist | Detective | |
| Average age | 33 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 77.0% Female, 23.0% | Male, 82.7% Female, 17.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.3% Unknown, 7.2% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 4.2% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 2.8% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 9% |