Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 3: Start your search
• Method 2 of 3: Search social media and specialized websites
• Method 3 of 3: Search government databases
• Tips
• Warnings

The internet makes finding an old friend much easier than it used to be, at least if you know what tools to use. Someone with a common name or little online presence can still be hard to find, but be patient and leave messages on friendship sites and they may be able to find you. Government records are another good resource, especially if the person has a criminal record or has donated large sums to political campaigns.

To step

Method 1 of 3: Start your search

1. Write down as many details as you can remember. If your search eventually leads to lingering or unclear results, you will be grateful for as much detail as possible. Try to remember the hair color, height, maiden name, names of family members and the names of all the cities where that person has lived and places where he or she worked.
2. Reach out to other people who have known the specific person you are looking for. Ask them questions about when they last saw the person, talked to him or her, or ask for personal information such as last known email addresses or phone numbers.
   • If you and your boyfriend have had a big fight, some of your contacts may not want to cooperate.
   • It's worth searching your address book to see if you have any connections with them that you've forgotten about.
3. Learn to search online. A simple search engine attempt often leads nowhere, but it is worth a try. Whether you're using Startpage, Google or another search engine, or one of the more specialized services described below, it's worth knowing how to make your search more effective:
   • Also look for nicknames, even if your girlfriend didn't have one when you knew her. For example, "Elisabeth" could now go through life as "Elly", "Betty" or "Lisa".
   • Search for the first name only, in case the person's last name has changed due to marriage or divorce.
   • On search engines, you enclose the friend's name in quotation marks and then add more information such as the school the person attended, a city of residence, or a company the person worked for.
4. Search for your friend's name on Google Image search. If you see a face that might be your girlfriend, follow the link to the website where the image is displayed. Even if it doesn't lead to contact information, you may find a more recent photo of your friend that can help you identify him or her in later search results.

Method 2 of 3: Search social media and specialized websites

1. Use social media. Search for the person's full name on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social websites as well as Google or other search engines.
   • On Facebook, type the name in the top search bar and press Enter. In the left pane, choose People. A list of filters should now appear at the top of your search, where you can enter possible locations, workplaces or schools.
2. Use special websites to find people. Pipl is one of the more impressive free search services out there. You can also try ZabaSearch, or pay for a search on Intelius, radaris, peekyou, Veromi.com or Spokeo.com. You can often take the free partial results from various commercial search sites and merge phone numbers and addresses, without actually paying for the data. Each website provides different information, although most of it is quite old. Spokeo often provides the most recent data.
   • Make sure to scroll all the way through the Pipl results. An email address can be found deep in an old blog post, an online survey, or a forum comment.
3. Sign up to find friends' websites. This works best if you suspect that your friend is also looking for you, as these websites leave public messages for people to find. Try Lost Friends.
   • Be very careful with sites that require a credit card subscription, as that is often a scam, or can turn out to be more expensive than you expected. All of the above options are free.
   • Check your Spam or Junk Mail folder for the confirmation email when you sign up.
4. Search through universities, military, or companies. Many alumni sites require paid memberships to use, or will ask your friend to pay to view your post. Still, some of these sites can be useful resources if you know where the person went to school.
   • ZoomInfo's search option is a useful resource for those in the business world.
   • BatchMates is a free alumni reunion site. It is focused on India, but includes members worldwide.
   • If your friend served in the United States military, check out the online Buddy Finder.

Method 3 of 3: Search government databases

1. Find marriage documents. Search online for "marriage records" and the name of the country where your girlfriend last lived, or a state if the person lived in the US. This information is often not available online, but the relevant state or province website should be able to tell you where the office is where you can access these documents.
   • If you do find a marriage document, but no corresponding contact information, you still have a new name to search for (that of the partner / spouse), as well as a possible name change to take into account.
2. Check out political contributions. In the United States, if your friend donated more than $ 200 to a political campaign within 10 days of an election, his or her name will be listed on the Federal Election Commission website, often with an address.
3. Search court records. Again, you should look for "court records" (or internationally for "court records") along with the name of the country or state your friend lived in, as there is no specific database where you can look them up.In many cases, you will have to file a request with a specific court to get more information, which can take up a fair amount of time for this method.
   • Don't be fooled by scam sites that charge you money to search government databases.
4. Use the UK electoral roll if you are looking for someone in the UK. To search this database for free, check with an Electoral Registration Office, or ask a local library staff if the service is available.
   • You can also pay a private company to do this quest for you.

Tips

• If you're looking for someone from the past, consider using birth, death, and marriage records to find accurate information about your friend. This will ensure that you have up-to-date information about his or her name, in particular. Once you have the best information, it will be easier to find the person. If you're looking for someone in the UK, consider Find Old Friends as they have the best reputation and are even known from BBC1 and TLC.
• If your friend's full name doesn't return any results, try searching for just the first name, plus the middle name if you know it. Your friend's name may have changed after marriage or divorce. If your friend's first name is common, narrow this search by adding a location or alma mater (e.g. university or college).

Warnings

• Only pay for an online search as a last resort and make sure the site is trustworthy. For example, Classmates.com makes it extremely difficult to cancel a membership and like many sites, it will automatically renew your account every month and charge you for it. Some of the better alumni sites include ClassReport (largely free).
• Some friends may want to leave the past behind or have too much on their mind to rebuild a friendship. Don't take this personally. If the friendship is important to you, consider reaching out after a few months to see if anything has changed.