Using a Detective Web Site to Look Up You

Make no mistake about it - you are being Googled, and then some! Employers, potential mates, neighbors old and new, parents of your kids friends: people you'd never imagine are flocking to detective web sites and using web detective tools available to anyone to look you up. Wouldn't it be nice to know what they're finding?

Just as someone else can sign up with one of the detective web sites reviewed here on our site to look you up, just as you can sign up on one of these detective web sites to look them up, you can just as well sign up to look yourself up. Everyone's doing it. Well...not everyone. But maybe everyone should.

A Mountain of Information
Sure, you know that public records are accessible to the general public - that should be obvious - but do you know exactly which records are considered public, and what information they contain? Do you realize how much personal information a perfect stranger can collect about you with the help of one of these same, simple detective web sites?

OK, so you're a not a sexual predator (or at least not a registered sex offender) - that's a good start. But do you owe child support? Were you adopted? How's your credit? Ever file for bankruptcy? Did you ever get a DUI? How many times have you been married? How much did you pay last month on your cell phone and who did you call? Who in your family has recently died? For that matter, who is in your family?

Do you really want just anyone knowing this information? Unfortunately, there's not much you can do about it. But what you can do is use these same detective web sites yourself and be forewarned (and forearmed) what information is available to the public about you.

What Information is Available
The following is just a partial list of public records that any of the detective web sites reviewed herein can help you access and search:

• Adoption Records
• Arrest Records
• Bankruptcy Records
• Birth Certificates
• Cemetery Records
• Child Support Data
• College and Alumni Records
• Contractor Records
• Court Filings (Civil and Criminal Court)
• Corporate Filings
• Credit Reports
• Criminal Indictments
• Death Records
• Dental Records
• Divorce Records
• DMV Records
• DNA Records
• Driving Records
• DUI Files
• DWI Files
• Email Addresses
• Estate Records
• FBI Files
• Fraud and Alias Files
• Genealogy Information
• Identity Theft Records
• ISP Records (of your online activity)
• Lien Records
• Marriage Records
• Military Records
• Missing Persons Reports
• Municipal Data
• Naturalization Records
• Newspaper Archives
• Obituaries
• Parole Records
• Philanthropic Activity Records
• Physician Records
• Pilot Records
• Police Officer Disciplinary Records
• Police Records
• Prison Records
• Probate Records
• Property Ownership Records
• Rap Sheets
• Real Estate Records
• Reverse Phone Directories
• Reverse Email Directories
• Sex Offender Lists
• Unclaimed Property Reports
• Vehicle ID Numbers
• Voter Registration

Are you starting to see how easy it is for anyone to probe even the most law-abiding individual's privacy with the simplest web detective tools offered on any of scores of competing detective web sites for less than the price of a dinner for two?

On a More Positive Note...
Of course not all detective web site work is dark and gritty. And some people may be using detective webs sites to look you up for positive, even benevolent reasons. Maybe you are owed money, an unclaimed inheritance or a misdirected refund. Maybe your old college flame or roommate (or both?) is trying to reconnect.

You can look yourself up using a detective web site to find out your family's history, to check for unclaimed inheritances or prize winnings in your name, or to make sure your credit information is accurate. But most of all, you ought to consider using a detective web site, if for no other reason than to find out what anyone with the inclination and an internet connection can find out about you.

Additional Resources:
Web Detective Reviews
Web Detective Top 10 List
Back to Articles Index