Private security work puts off-duty NYPD cops at risk, report finds

The NYPD’s program allowing private businesses to hire off-duty cops for security work has come under scrutiny by a city watchdog, with investigators flagging problems in officer safety, unpaid wages and poor regulations.

NYPD police officers completed nearly 300,000 paid detail assignments between 2023 and 2025 under the Paid Detail Program and generated about $5.4 million in revenue for the NYPD in 2025, according to a new investigative report from the Department of Investigation’s Office of the Inspector General for the NYPD. 

The review was prompted in part by the 2025 fatal shooting of Didarul Islam, an NYPD officer who was working a private security assignment through the program in Midtown when he was shot. The killing raised questions about the training and guidance officers receive, particularly as they take on security responsibilities for private companies.

“Officers participating in the Paid Detail Program deserve to have essential training, information about the detail they are assigned to, and protections to ensure they are paid for the work they do,” DOI Commissioner Nadia Shihata said in a statement.

Union says officers shouldn’t have to take on extra work

Officers interviewed by investigators said they did not consistently receive information about the locations where they were assigned, including details about other tenants, potential security threats or the specific reasons a company had requested police protection. The Police Benevolent Association argues that the program reflects deeper problems with police staffing and compensation.

The union said it was still reviewing the report but argued that reforms to the program alone would not address the underlying issues driving officers to take on additional work.

“The Paid Detail Program is no substitute for an adequately staffed police department or adequately compensating police officers,” PBA president Patrick Hendry said in a statement. “Police officers should not have to take on extra work to make ends meet, and the NYPD should have the staffing to provide the same level of police service to every resident and business in this city, not just those who pay extra for it.”

The inspector general's investigation found that officers generally receive routine NYPD training but are not required to undergo additional preparation for solo assignments, despite the differences between working alone as a private security guard and performing regular police duties.

The hesitation over the program also stems partly from a history of officers’ suing over unpaid wages. In 2023, TD Bank agreed to pay $8.7 million to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by roughly 5,000 officers who alleged they were not paid as part of the program. A subsequent lawsuit filed in 2025 accused other businesses, including Target and The New York Times Company, of failing to pay officers.

Program began in the 90s to generate money for the NYPD and officers

The program began in 1998 by then-Police Commissioner Howard Safir to allow private businesses and organizations to hire off-duty NYPD officers for security work. 

The program was originally intended to serve several interests: giving officers an opportunity to supplement their incomes, providing private businesses with police security, generating revenue for the NYPD and increasing the uniformed police presence without additional taxpayer expense. 

In all, the inspector general issued 11 recommendations, six focused on improving officer training, supervision and access to information about assignments, four addressing scheduling and timekeeping, and one calling for consistent enforcement against vendors that fail to pay officers on time.

DOI said a second part of the investigation is forthcoming, saying that the first part can help the NYPD begin to address oversight problems, while the investigators finish a statistical analysis of whether paid detail hours are associated with negative policing outcomes. This analysis builds on a 2023 DOI report that found a significant correlation between additional NYPD overtime hours and negative policing outcomes, including lawsuits alleging improper police conduct and car accidents.