The American Repossessor

Have you ever had one of those cases that no matter how many database searches you do, you just can’t find the person you are  looking for?  Using some online searches to assist you helps with creating a wider profile on the subject.  When I teach my classes, I always explain that databases are a good starting point; however, the web opens up a whole portal to the personal side of a person.  I am going to focus on some online sites that can assist you to locate someone, locate relative or associate information and business affiliations.

Remember, to always try and take the information you find and cross reference it with additional information.  So let’s bypass that fact that you should always run your subject through a quick Google, Yahoo or Alta Vista search (or any other of your favorite search sites).  There is a whole other layer to the web called the “deep web” or more commonly known as the “invisible web”.  This area of the world wide web is where the more personal information can be found.  It has been reported this ‘invisible’ layer of the web is 500 times larger than the surface web.  This surface area is what is normally searched by the basic ‘Google’ searches.

The following sites are unique as they don’t only focus on a search engine results but pull information from several deep web sources.  They will pull data from search results, images, email searches, documents, address/telephone information and social networking sites.  The following search site, not only pulls information here in the United States, it can do international searching with coverage in Austria, France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

This is www.123people.com

Another site I recommend is www.pipl.com.  This site is pretty nifty as you can search this deep web crawler by name, email address, username or phone number!  This is one of the first sites I will use to profile a USER NAME.

A third site is www.cvgadget.com

Learning the difference between the surface web and the deep web is important in understanding how information is accessed.  Have fun with getting to know these sites.