The movies have always made it seem so easy to look up someone online. According to these stories, all you need is to type the name and magically everything about that person pops up, right from their birth date to the times they have been in tabloids and some other information which is supposed to be sealed. However, in real life, it is not that easy to find out people’s information online. It may be easy to get their address or phone number and other basic information. It is another story if you are looking to dig up some private dirt on them.
It may not be easy but is often necessary. You can’t just invite some stranger to your home just because they claim to be your long lost cousin or say, decide a life partner only based on their looks and some mildly creepy habits who enjoys their drinks a bit too much. Or simply, you want to look up someone online because they are concerned with your money and so on.
It is not easy to find resources to do private investigation for free. Luckily, there are a few resources that can come in handy.
Let Google Come to the Rescue!
Sometimes, a simple Google search about the person is all you need to find enough about them for your needs. You can even try out Google Operators to do a more defined search. After a Google Search, you can check out the Google News. If the concerned person had a run-in with the paparazzi, it is likely to be covered in that segment. Finally, you can set up Google alerts, so whenever there is a mention about that person in the future, you will be alerted.
Seriously, if you want to look someone online, Google should be your first bet.
Try Different Search Engines
When Google doesn’t seem to have enough information, there are other search engines you can try. They can help you aggregate data on people you are looking for with just a click of a button and some more scooping. There are different websites which are highly detailed and can even present to you the target person’s social media usernames on different websites. There are other websites which can give you the places they have previously lived, phone numbers, relatives’ name, etc. For many of these, you need to take your wallet out, because anything other than basic information comes at a cost.
Find Out if Someone Is Dead or Alive
Sometimes, it is not about digging the dirt on someone but if the dirt has been laid on them, and they have died. Simply speaking, if they are a missing person you need to find, and you are afraid that they might be dead. You can visit various websites which are dedicated to searches for the dead. Such websites can help you look with their extensive database and find the place where they might be buried.
Another way is to pull some strings and visit the library to dig through old newspapers for obituaries or look through the official records of the government made public for citizens.
If the person you are looking for is alive, you can try connecting on various social media websites or on various job portals since most people are now a user of those. A search on job portals can give you the information of where they have been working and their previous jobs and other social media websites will help you find out what they have been up to.
The Internet is your best friend. Today, with so many websites and accounts, it can be much easier to find someone, just as seen in the movies. But unlike the movie heroes who find information easily, you need to do extensive scooping.
So take your investigative shovel out and start digging!
