# How to find a person

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-find-a-person/849425>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 13, 2020, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-find-a-person/849425 "2020-03-13T17:38:48Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![aethelred](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@aethelred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aethelred)\
**Post date:** [March 31, 2020, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-find-a-person/849425/21 "2020-03-31T01:53:32Z")

</div>

Related: is there a non-nefarious database searchable by first name + birthdate? I’m trying to locate someone with a common first name and probable current last name (she divorced long ago - married name was moderately rare and no hits; unmarried name very common). I worry that such a database might be nefarious on the grounds that it would probably be helpful to would-be identity thieves.

I assume that appropriately licensed PIs, skip tracers, etc. have access to such databases, but my non-nefarious purposes (trying to locate for high school reunion) don’t meet the criteria that an ethical PI/skip tracer/etc. would require.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![skdo23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@skdo23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/skdo23)\
**Post date:** [March 31, 2020, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-find-a-person/849425/22 "2020-03-31T03:48:11Z")

</div>

[Intelius.com](http://Intelius.com), you can search by name and optionally by state, and it can help you narrow it down further by providing current and former towns, age, and names of relatives.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\
**Post date:** [March 31, 2020, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-find-a-person/849425/23 "2020-03-31T12:40:37Z")

</div>

> [@skdo23](#):
>
> [Intelius.com](http://Intelius.com), you can search by name and optionally by state, and it can help you narrow it down further by providing current and former towns, age, and names of relatives.

Actually I tried accessing Intellius and they would not let me register and do a search. (Nothing nefarious in my background.) I think they have tightened up the rules on who can use their site. If anyone knows a way aroud this, please let me know (you can ping me).

Beyond that, I found a site that purported to be searchable by DOB but it turned out to be a bunch of BS.

If you register an [ancestry.com](http://ancestry.com), you can search, but it will not give you the person’s current address.

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-find-a-person/849425.md?page=1)