# Can you find somebody's website? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 3, 2006, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217 "2006-08-03T17:33:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217/1 "2006-08-03T17:33:47Z")
This is probably a stupid question, but say you know somebody has a website, but search engines and all tell you nothing - his name isn’t on the site itself. Is there a way to search and find out if any websites are registered to a name? Nothing illegal, of course, this is all in fun. ---
**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217/2 "2006-08-03T19:30:53Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > This is probably a stupid question, but say you know somebody has a website, but search engines and all tell you nothing - his name isn’t on the site itself. Is there a way to search and find out if any websites are registered to a name? Nothing illegal, of course, this is all in fun. Someday in the not too far future, the next version of the web, the Semantic Web, will enable you to do such an indexed search of a site, but we’re nowhere near there yet. Meanwhile there are indeed accessible databases of what domain name is registered to whom, but I’m not aware of a web engine that lets you search by anything other than the domain name. If you know that they don’t have their own domain name, but are working through an ISP, you may be able to guess the URL using a standard format, such as [http://www.ispname.net/members/~yourfriendsusername](http://www.ispname.net/members/~yourfriendsusername) ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217/3 "2006-08-03T20:11:12Z")
Maybe I could ask him where he gets his hosting, all casual like I’m looking to change mine… It’s not possible to guess that way with him. I know the subject of the website, though. ---
**Author:** ![FormerMarineGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/65b543/32.png) [@FormerMarineGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FormerMarineGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217/4 "2006-08-03T20:28:06Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Maybe I could ask him where he gets his hosting, all casual like I’m looking to change mine… > > It’s not possible to guess that way with him. I know the subject of the website, though. Just curious. Is it an up and running website? Or is it possibly parked and for sale? ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217/5 "2006-08-03T22:23:54Z")
As far as we know it’s an up and running website. We just heard he had one and wanted to find it. He’s very secretive by nature, you see, and he won’t tell us where it is or anything. ---
**Author:** ![Will\_Repair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a698b9/32.png) [@Will\_Repair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Will_Repair)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217/6 "2006-08-03T23:49:37Z")
You could use a spider to search the web. But that would be impractical. Can the WhoIs database be spidered or searched? ---
**Author:** ![Roadfood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc348/32.png) [@Roadfood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roadfood)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2006, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217/7 "2006-08-04T00:38:52Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > As far as we know it’s an up and running website. We just heard he had one and wanted to find it. He’s very secretive by nature, you see, and he won’t tell us where it is or anything. To paraphrase Dr. Strangelove: “The whole point of having a website is lost if you keep it a secret!” Why on Earth would someone put up a website and not want to tell anyone about it? ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2006, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217/8 "2006-08-04T01:00:30Z")
> [@Roadfood](#): > > Why on Earth would someone put up a website and not want to tell anyone about it? Well, I have a Web site for my hardcore fetish erotic fiction which I’ve written under a pseudonym. I have a policy of not sharing it with people I know in real life lest they think less of me; meanwhile my target audience will be able to find it easily enough by using appropriate search terms. The OP’s friend may have a similar situation. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2006, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217/9 "2006-08-04T01:13:38Z")
> [@Roadfood](#): > > To paraphrase Dr. Strangelove: “The whole point of having a website is lost if you keep it a secret!” > > Why on Earth would someone put up a website and not want to tell anyone about it? An Episode Of Law & Order: SVU had a peeping-tom place several covert cameras in a victim’s apartment, and the video inputs led to a hidden laptop acting as a server, hosting a website only HE was hitting. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2006, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-find-somebodys-website/367217/10 "2006-08-04T04:34:10Z")
> [@Roadfood](#): > > Why on Earth would someone put up a website and not want to tell anyone about it? Not telling _coworkers_ would me guess for any one of many reasons.