untangling_the_web

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Internet researchers agree: searching for information about a person is one of the
hardest, most frustrating types of research to perform, especially when you're limited
to using free resources that do not require registration. The major reasons this is so
difficult are:
1. The decentralized nature of the Internet. Despite what some people may fear,
there is no giant database "out there" where everyone's names and
addresses are stored. There are many, many databases all independent of
each other spread around the world. Also, there are as yet no reliable publicly
available mobile telephone directories.
2. How quickly the Internet changes. Web pages come and go, individuals
frequently change email addresses and/or service providers, networks go up
and down, etc.
3. Data about people is often found in the deep web. In most cases, the
information is in databases that search engine spiders cannot crawl and
index. This means that, in addition to traditional search engines, we have to
use other resources to search for people.
4. People have become much more conscious of and careful about their
personal information. In the early days of the Internet, people thought nothing
of putting their contact information on their webpages, using de-obfuscated
email addresses in newsgroups, the finger utility was still in use, etc. Today,
people are much more likely to hide personal information to protect their
privacy and their computers from malicious hackers.
The Usual Suspects Round-up: Debunking People Finder Lists
I get really irritated at sites and people who proclaim how fast and easy it is to find
people using the Internet. Because you are going to encounter lots of bogus claims
about how simple it is to find people via the Internet, I thought it would be a good
idea to go down the list of the usual types of sites recommended for people
searches and discuss their advantages (few) and drawbacks (many). What follows is
an overview of the usual sources cited as ways to find people and the problems with
and benefits of each.
" Sites that claim "you can find anyone, anywhere!"
These are all over the web. The bigger the hype, the smaller the likelihood
they are worth anything. Approach with care and skepticism or, better yet,
avoid altogether.
" Big Directories
Number one on virtually all "search for people" lists are large directories
(telephone andlor email). They are usually disappointing. What's the
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