This section contains data and statistics on the global private military and security industry, including specific data on contractors working for the United States. The data has been compiled by academic institutions, think tanks, industry associations, and governments. 

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GLOBAL DATA

True global statistics on private security contractor use does not currently exist. However, a patchwork of different entities gather data on certain regions or types of states. The Confederation of European Security Services provides statistics for PSCs operating in Europe, while the Freie Universität Berlin focuses on private security in weak and fragile states. Other aggregations of private security data, such as those used in humanitarian operations or the numbers of weapons used also appear in this section. 

UNITED STATES DATA

The United States is the world's largest consumer of private military and security services, and as such there exists a large amount of data and analysis of the government's use of security contractors. While the U.S. government collects data on contractor personnel numbers deployed in Afghanistan, Iraq, and the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility through the use of its SPOT Tracking System, that data is largely classified. What is available—whether through government disclosures, government reports or independent investigative journalism—appears below, organized by topic.

Department of Labor Statistics

The Department of Labor compiles data on contractor injuries or deaths working for U.S. bases around the world. Under the U.S. Defense Base Act, American defense contractors are obliged to report the war zone deaths and injuries of their employees—including subcontractors and foreign workers—to the Department of Labor Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP). The OWCP reports are available by employer, by insurance carrier, and by country. For further explanation about the data, view the Department of Labor background information site. According to the Department of Labor, these reports do not constitute the complete or official casualty statistics of civilian contractor injuries and deaths. They are offered as general information to the public who may be interested in the scope of civilian government contracting overseas.

The following provides cumulative information on contractor employee injuries and deaths from 2001 to 2011 as well as fiscal year reports from 2009-2012. Previous fiscal year reports are unavailable. Starting in 2009, a quarterly breakdown of cumulative injuries and deaths can be found on the Department of Labor Statistics website.

CENTCOM Data ^top

The U.S. Department of Defense issues statistical reports on the number of contractors supporting U.S. operations in the U.S. CENTCOM Area of Responsibility, Iraq, and Afghanistan. The number of U.S. nationals, third-country nations, and local/host country nationals employed as contractors is reported. Reports are issued quarterly, each fiscal year beginning in August 2008 to the present.

CENTCOM Quarterly Contractor Census Reports