Security guards usually work for stores or other private businesses. They must be licensed in Alaska, but they are not police and do not have the same powers as police. A security guard can only arrest you if they actually see you committing a crime, like shoplifting, or if they have good reason to believe you committed a serious crime such as a felony. Alaska law does not give security guards a special right to stop or hold you just because you seem suspicious, and they normally can search you only if they have lawfully arrested you, mainly to get back stolen items. If a security guard works for a store and is not working with the police, the rules for what they can do are different from the rules that police officers have to follow.