Home | Work & Business | Education | Find Schools | How to Find a Person You Know

How to Find a Person You Know

by Contributing Writer

Overview

Perhaps you met someone you hit it off with but didn't get his contact information. You can likely find that information via the Internet. Maybe there is a long-lost friend from high school who you would like to reconnect with. You can find her via a range of different means. In today's digital age, there are various ways to find a person you know.

Step 1

Search for the person's name online. Put the name in quotation marks to narrow your search. This ensures you'll only get results that feature that person's first and last names together. In some instances, you may be able to find concrete information on the person quite easily, such as details on where he works and lives.
Step 2

Use social networking sites. Nowadays, people have profiles on a wide range of social networking sites, such as Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and Friendster. All the sites allow you to search for individuals by name.
Step 3

Try white pages resources. You can use either traditional print or online white pages. While it's helpful to know the city and state in which the person lives, various online white pages allow you to simply search for the person's name. If the person is listed, you can obtain her phone number, address or email address via such resources.
Step 4

Utilize alumni resources. If you attended school with this person, you may be able to get in touch with him via your school's alumni association. You can also try to contact the school directly. Some schools keep records on their alumni.
Step 5

Ask around. If you knew this person when you were younger, ask friends, family members and colleagues if they know where she is now. Each bit of information you can gather serves as a tool to help you find her. If you're trying to find information on a new acquaintance, ask people who were there when you met her. For example, if you met at a coffee shop, ask the employees if she comes in often.
Step 6

Hire a private investigator. If you are unable to find the person yourself, you can hire a private investigator to do the legwork for you. You can find private investigators in your local yellow pages. They generally charge by the hour and are quite resourceful at finding people.