There was a time when looking up the personal information of people you’re curious about online was considered a little stalker-like. Today, however, it’s commonly done without a second thought. Do you want to apply for a new job? Your potential future boss is currently on the computer checking out your social media profiles and your online presence. Do you want to accept a date with someone you don’t know well? You’re online looking up all you can about them from their social media profiles to their arrest records.

You can find out almost anything you want to know about anyone these days, and the internet makes the search so much easier. There are many ways you can find someone’s full name if you suspect the name they gave you isn’t their full name. You can track someone down with your computer and a little time. Here are a few ways you can do this without much effort.

How to Find out Personal Information About Someone

The first thing you must do is understand there is more than one way to find out someone’s legal name. You should start with the easiest searches and work your way up to the more difficult and in-depth information.

  • Search their social media profiles
  • Search their name using Google
  • Search the company they work for online
  • Search the local clerk of court’s website for public records
  • Search FreeBackgroundCheck.org to find out someone’s name

The easiest way to find out what you’re looking for when someone’s full name is in question is to listen to what they say. Whether you suspect someone gave you the wrong name when you met or you just didn’t catch the last name of someone who interests you, you can think back to what they said and use that in your search.

1. Search Social Media – Start with the name they gave you and enter it into the search boxes on all the social media search pages. It might narrow it down a lot if they have a unique name or you know the city in which they reside. You can further break this down by searching mutual friends if you know you have one. For example, you met Beth through your mutual friend John. Go to John’s social media accounts to search his followers and friend lists to see if there are any Beth’s there. You might recognize her profile photo and have her full name.

2. Search the Clerk of Court Website – This only works if you know where someone lives or where they were born. Did your new friend say she is a lifelong North Carolina native who has always lived in Charlotte? Start with the local Clerk of Court and search the public records to find out if there is someone in the records system with the name they gave you. Perhaps you’re worried she’s married and not telling you. Maybe you simply want to know if she’s using her real name or her married name. This might help you find that information.

3. Perform a Background Check – This is an easy task if you have the right website. You can pay a small fee to provide all the information you have to find out if someone is using their legal name. Sometimes a person doesn’t want you to know he or she was married or that they are related to someone specific, and they use a name that’s not their real name. This is one way to find out the truth.

Important Tips That Help You Find Anyone Online

Sometimes you have very little to work with, but you can make that work. You can ask friends if they know this person. You can search for them on their place of business’ website to see if they are listed there by their full name. You can perform any number of online searches including a basic Google search.

If you decide to perform a Google search, you should always put the name of the person you are searching for in quotes. For example, you’ll write “John Smith” in the search bar followed by any other information you have such as the name of their company or their city. If you don’t have the last name, you can even try entering the name you have in quotes followed by any other information you have. It might bring you more information than you assume.

Finding someone online is easy when you have certain information, and it’s made easier when you use the correct database to find their real name. It’s helpful if someone is trying to hide a marriage, a record, or anything else unflattering. The world is so open these days it’s almost entertaining to find out just how easily you can find someone’s name without them knowing.