free people search

Sometimes the term is also applied in relation to attempts to find individuals regarded as missing.

As first step in the process of people search all known data referring to the person to be found are carefully gathered and investigated, since hypotetically every piece of information represents an important cue characterizing the individuality and inimitability of the lost person. As indispensable sources of information in this case serve the family circle and close acquaintances and friends. Anyhow, more often than not parents and siblinlgs can turn out to be that essential missing link that will eventually provide an opportunity of localizing the person and establishing a contact.

From the legal point of view a person searching for his or her biological parents makes use of the Right of Being Informed of the Actual Parentage. In fact, the meaning of this law allows an adopted person (adoption), only on entering full age however, to search for his or her actual parents regardless of the agreement or disagreement on the side of the adoptive parents.

Internet searches

With the help of search engines one can insert a definite name and find out the whole vertigo range of electronic pages referring to the name in question in this way or another. Search method of this type is justified mostly in reference to people with unusual, rare, or foreign forenames or surnames.

Apart from that the Internet provides domains to certain foundations which specialize in helping to reunite former classmates. Other agencies can provide assistance in localizing other categories of „lost“ relations, like family members, friends or acquaintances. Aside foundations, paid people search sites have become very popular and prolific in the United States.

Taking advantage of public records availability in the United States, a number of Web based companies began purchasing U.S. public records data and selling it online. The number of sites making this data available online is staggering. These types of sites are usually fit into one of three categories: genealogy, people search and background checks. Though many pay people search sites may provide all of the three types of services mentioned, paid people search sites tend to specialize in one niche of people search.

In the genealogy category, Ancestry (Weblink) is by far the most prolific of all U.S. based genealogy websites that charge a fee for database access. Conversely, the LDS church operates a free genealogy site FamilySearch (Weblink) which gives users free access to many of the same databases used by fee-based sites.

In the category of people search, the number of companies that provide this service is staggering. However, the most popular and probably widely used Web based people search service is Yahoo (Weblink). Yahoo offers a free people search service that allows the user to search for both e-mail and physical addresses as well as phone number. However, Yahoo and many other free people searches are dependant on White Pages data and often don't have the most current or accurate records depending upon their particular data source. Additionally, the proliferation of cell phones has created a fissure in the comprehensive listings usually found in traditional telephone directories. Yet, in an attempt to bolster sales at their fee-based sites, many paid people search sites will offer a "free" white pages listing that is usually more current than the wholly free services.

Apart from the users that get satisfactory results from free Web based people search services, there are those that will inevitably use a fee-based Web people search service. Most Web based people search services in the United States purchase their data from the same sources. Therefore, when selecting a pay people search site you must consider how often that vendor is purchasing and refreshing their data source. Additionally, it is wise to consider how each vendor aggregates and presents search data and which aggregate and presentation is most relevant to your search type. Also, purchasing a 24-hour membership from pay sites is the most economically sound way to evaluate their data. A membership allows you to perform multiple searches for a low price.

Telephone directories

Nowadays there exists a stunning versatility of numerous telephone books (telephone directory), both printed editions issued by major telephone companies (e.g. Deutsche Telekom AG in Germany), alternatively CD-ROM or DVD-editions, and online sources. In this reference quite typical recently two terms are used: the so-called „yellow pages“ catering for business enterprises and other organizations, and „white pages“ applied to the database of private telephone customers. Being annually updated and systematized, telephone books provide a relatively reliable source of information for people search, moreover their undoubted advantage remains the possibility of searching not only for the telephone number (as well as commonly the address data) of the person whose exact full name is known, but also in the reciprocal direction (i.e. „inverted search“) – i.e., the telephone number can be used to retrieve the unknown personal information (name and address).

Until recently this sort of information was considered to refer to the private sphere of each individual and therefore could not be breached and be publicly accessible. However, though majorly influenced through the alteration of telecommunication laws and regulations, the appearance of this sort of commercial production can hardly be regarded as accomplished and is still on the way to perfection. One of the prevailing inconsistencies is caused by the fact of privacy maintenance, in accordance with which a client unwilling to allow of „inverted search“ over his personality is able to expel his or her name and telephone number from the telephone book. Some local telephone providers can also perform this function automatically on behalf of their clients. Thus, people search even on hand of an updated telephone book can hardly guarantee a successful outcome. However, a search for the lost person's parents, friends or partners in the telephone book can partially compensate for this shortcoming and enhance the chances.

Another advantage is possible to benefit from if the person's address is known, but neither the exact name nor telephone number information are noted in the telephone book. In this case one can turn for help to the neighbours (whose exact names and telephone numbers can be retrieved from the telephone book) and ask them for assistance in establishing the contact with the person in question, or should he or she have relocated, gather information about his or her possible new address.

Address register office

Predominantly (though not worldwide accepted) it is also possible to send a request to the register office that was in charge of the lost person's last valid address. As a rule one must direct a written letter of request and after remitting a minor fee receive the corresponding information. However, essentially required for this sort of people search is the full fore- and surname as well as the birth date of the person, in order to eliminate the risk of referring to a wrong identity.

Parish registers

Parish registers represent the oldest organized form of preserving personal data, dating back to the bygone times when no register offices were yet imaginable. Even nowadays (though quite differently and varying from region to region) certain events of considerable social importance are fixed in parish registers by local priests. The most common data to retrieve from these annals are facts of birth, christening, confirmations, marriages or death. Usually church registers remain free to the public disposal with the agreement of the present ecclesiastic administration.