People Search: How to Quickly and Easily Find Someone You Lost Track Of

Recently my wife's sister got curious about what had happened to her first husband after they split. That marriage had ended badly and they hadn't been in contact for nearly thirty years. She tried searching for her ex-husband's name on Google and Yahoo but didn't get any hits. Knowing I do research online in my work as a professional writer, she asked if I could find out anything.
I write for business and technical publications, so I use a number of high-priced databases for in-depth research. But I suggested she try a simpler alternative - a solution I use myself when I want to find someone quickly and easily. I recommended she try one of the people search database services. Even the better ones cost so little, they're practically free. Most offer a trial period. I gave her the name of one to try.
She was dubious. She's not very comfortable using her computer for much more than email. Her stab at the search engines had already left her flustered. Now she was going to have to "sign up for something and learn something completely new... oh my goodness," was the way she put it.
Yet, later the same day I suggested it, she emailed back excitedly. In just minutes, she'd found out all kinds of information about her ex. It turned out that he'd done something of a turnaround after they'd broken up. Their divorce resulted from fights over his serious drinking problem. After they broke up, though, he'd eventually gone back to med school, gotten his MD and become an orthopedic surgeon. He'd even been instrumental in developing some sort of device used by other surgeons in his field.
Unfortunately, the poor fellow had passed, but at least my sister-in-law found comfort in knowing that things had worked out for him after all. She remarked that even though their relationship ended in the worst imaginable way, it had started from a good point. She said she hadnt really wanted to contact him. She just wanted to know what had happened to him.
Sometimes all we want is just to satisfy our curiosity about what happened to someone we've lost track of. Most of us have an old friend or acquaintance we still wonder about.
A Better Way to Find People
I suspect that's what makes people searching so hot. As many as half a million times a month, someone searches on Google alone, looking for a way to find a lost person. Whether it's someone from the past with whom we've lost touch, or someone we met last weekend and yearn to see again, were always searching for others.
Unfortunately, most general searches fail. Just like Googling failed for my sister-in-law. The information is out there, somewhere. But being forced to sift through so many unrelated results makes it nearly impossible.
That's why I recommended she use a people search service - sometimes they're called Internet Detective services. They pull all the information spread across thousands of servers and combine it into people-specific search databases. Then when you drop in a name or an address or a phone number, whatever bit of information you have, you get instant gratification. Up pops the latest scoop about your person.
Thats totally unlike the cold mechanical response a Google or Yahoo gives:
Results 1 - 10 of about 55,100,000 for joe smith. (0.06 seconds)
You can almost hear the search engine yawn.
By the way - most searchers don't know this - search engine results don't actually extend beyond about a thousand entries. Even when the search engine results page says they found millions and millions of hits, they don't actually bother to dig it up and give you access to all of it. They're really just estimating from their own database tables. Even they know it's a waste of time.
Yawn, yawn, yawn
On the other hand, it's exciting when you do a person search on a dedicated database. You find what you're looking for in seconds. Plus, you not only get current information, often you get historical data too. You find not only where the person is now but also where they lived or worked before that and before that and before that.
You can sort of see your old friend's life laid bare. (Now what in heaven's name was George doing in Poughkeepsie, New York, in winter. He always hated the cold)
Sometime you find a person's life didn't turn out the way you'd have thought. That's when the Criminal Check part of the service can help you find out what prison they ended up in!
When You Choose a Personal Search Service, Here's What to Look For
If you decide to try out a personal search database, here are the things I've found important to consider during a review
1. Free versus Paid
I've been disappointed by the free services. Their main concern seems to be to try and get you to click on some of the pay-per-click ads they're displaying - so they can make a little money.
2. Speed
You want a service that responds quickly. Make sure you try it out. A fun test is to do a search on yourself. You get to check speed and accuracy! 3. Proprietary Database
If a service compiles their own database, they must be fairly successful. It's costly to build and maintain. Such well-funded providers are much more likely to stay around. From a usability standpoint, it's better too. You get a single interface that you can quickly learn.
And I've never seen a free service that has its own database. Most of the free services I've checked out are really just link farms - they just point you at some public or government database.
4. Training and Support
Be sure you can easily learn to use any service you choose. Actually, you'll find the better services are intuitive - how to search will make sense as soon as you look at it. But better services will also provide extra, in-depth searching. If you ever need the extra, it might require you dig into it a bit before you can fully use it. Just make sure your service has easy, accessible ways to learn, like tutorials.
And don't ignore support. Sooner or later you'll have questions or there will be something you need help to get resolved. It's best if they offer free, live support.
Final Word
Join the millions using the web to track down old friends and new friends. But make it easier on yourself by using a People Search service rather than a general search engine. Have fun finding out exactly what did become of your old friend (or even your old, not-so-friendly ex)

Become an Online Investigator

How many times have you watched your neighbor across the street through closed drapes or blinds? Something about him seems suspicious, and your instincts are on the alert regarding this shady neighbor. You see strange people coming and going at all hours of the night, and his house has been broken into three times in the last month. You find yourself wondering why. Your best friend calls you, distraught, and tells you she thinks her husband is having an affair. She desperately wants to know the truth, but is afraid of a confrontation with him. Another friend was involved in a traffic accident, and the other driver fled the scene. She has his license plate number, but is incredibly frustrated because the police do not seem interested in her case. If you have ever found yourself in one of these situations, and had an overwhelming urge to find out the answers, you may make a terrific online investigator. Discover the truth through legal investigations online Imagine being able to search local police records for your neighbor's address, only to find he has been arrested four times for narcotics violations. Or, you can search the motor vehicles database and local police reports to locate the name and address of your friend's hit-and-run driver. You can also find out where your friend's husband has been going after work, and now you must decide whether or not to tell her the truth. Having the ability to investigate these relatively simple situations online is easy. Many reputable databases can provide you with unlimited access to millions of public records from all across the country. You have nationwide access to documents that might otherwise never be seen. Search court documents to find out if your next door neighbor is really a deadbeat parent, or perhaps a convicted child molester. Or search pending foreclosures to get that once-in-a-lifetime deal on a bigger home. All of this can be done by searching public records legally. Conveniently protect your family and friends with the power of knowledge You could go to the courthouse or to the recorder's office, and search all of these records by hand. Or you could use an affordable online service, such as Net Detective, that will immediately transform you from a neighborhood busy body to seasoned investigator. You can have the inside scoop, allowing you to protect yourself, your family, and your friends. You can have insider information on your neighbor's private lives, or you can check out a new neighbor to make sure they are not a threat to your children. You can find out about your friends and lover's past histories, and learn how to prevent others from finding out your secrets. Run your own credit check to protect yourself against theft or fraud, especially in this day and age of forgery and identity theft. Whatever your motivations are, you can become your neighborhood's online sleuth. Within a matter of minutes, you can discover the truth behind your investigations protecting you and your loved ones with insider knowledge.

How much do you really know about your lover?

No matter how well you might think you know someone, all of us have a past. Everyone has secrets they hold near and dear to their hearts, without revealing them even to the most important people in our lives. What secrets does your lover hold? When it comes to your lover, you hope those secrets are innocuous secret crushes, a wild weekend in Vegas, or little white lies that harm no one. But what if they are big secrets? Perhaps your lover has been married before. Maybe he or she spent time in jail. There may be serious financial difficulties – tax evasion, bankruptcies, or a string of lost jobs. Your lover could be hiding secrets that could have a profound effect on your life together. Unveiling those secrets at a later date could erode any trust you have in each other, and cause the relationship to crumble. Break open the box of hidden pasts through the internet Wouldn't it be better to find out sooner rather than later, if there are any questions about your lover's past? A simple background check will give you the answers you need, giving you the knowledge to continue in your relationship with confidence. Knowing if there are any obstacles up front will give you the ability to decide if you want to try to fix them, or if they are so serious in nature that you need to move on from a shady lover. There are several ways to go about discovering your lover's past. You can search public records for tax information, lawsuit decisions, liens, divorces, even criminal histories. You can find out whether your lover owns any significant amounts of property, or has ever had property repossessed or foreclosed upon. Find out if the IRS is going to come knocking at your door looking for taxes owed to them. Or if there is an ex-spouse who will show up unexpectedly seeking alimony or child support. Quickly, simply, and easily find out about your lover's past An easier way to discreetly play detective and find out the information you need is to conduct an online background check of your lover. Specialized online services, such as Net Detective, have large databases, allowing you to find all of the above information in one convenient location. A simple search from your own computer will allow you to access public records from all over the country, providing you with the facts you need to put your mind at ease. Many of these databases can also cross-check any aliases, so you will get the information you need even if your lover is not being honest about his or her true identity. If you do learn your lover has been involved in less-than-desirable behavior, you will have the tools you need to decide how you wish to handle the situation. No matter how well you think you know your lover, you will be amazed at the useful information a thorough online background check will give you.

Find Out Hidden Secrets about Your Partner's Past

It sounds like a storyline of a bad movie you meet your partner and fall in love, preparing to live happily ever after. Perhaps you even manage to live out your fairy tale life for an extended period of time. Maybe you get married and have children, or take off together to explore the world.
The hidden secrets your lover heart holds
Suddenly one day, your whole world comes crashing down around you. Perhaps you learn your partner was involved in some shady business dealings and now has the law after him. Maybe he or she was married before, and you find yourself confronted by a jilted spouse. Or perhaps your lover owes a tremendous amount of money to his debtors.
Every day, people learn life-altering facts about their spouses. Secrets that have been hidden for years come roaring back with a hearty vengeance. In a matter of a moment, everything you believed to be true has changed.
How do you handle such situations? Better yet, how do you prevent them from happening to you in the first place?
You can always try a search of your partner’s name on the Internet, but will it really give you the information you need?
Protecting yourself and your heart with a privy investigation
A simple background check can be done through the use of public records. These checks reveal important information about someone's past. You can easily find out if your lover has ever been married or owes child support, has ever been arrested, or was sued in court.
By playing sleuth on your own, you can find out important information that will ward off any future surprises in your relationship. The most effective way to do this is to enlist the power of the Internet.
The biggest obstacle you will run into during your online investigation is determining where to begin looking to find the information you want. Rather than spending hours searching thousands of websites or databases, simplify things by utilizing one of the online services for personal background checks, such as Net Detective.
With a specialized product such as Net Detective, you can access millions of records from all over the country. Even if your partner fled another state to escape his or her problems, you will be able to easily and quickly uncover those secrets.
Save yourself from becoming entangled in a situation that could prove to be costly, heartbreaking, or downright dangerous by unearthing your partner's secrets now. After all, knowledge is power, and knowing your partner's past gives you the power to plan for your own future.

New Friends Online? Check Them Out Before Getting Too Close

The Internet has become one of the latest places to meet people. Whether you are looking for a casual friend or a romantic interlude, it can all be found on the worldwide web. Places like Facebook and Myspace give you a forum to express yourself to others, and the number of matchmaker sites these days is overwhelming.

If you have ever spent any time meeting and greeting on the web, you know that most people are not exactly what they make themselves out to be. Some of them have gone so far as to create an entire alternate identity.

Despite the dangers, the rewards of meeting online can be great. You have the opportunity to get to know others from all over the world. You make new and interesting friends from places you may never have visited. It provides an excellent opportunity for us to share our cultures and open our minds to new possibilities.

Who is really behind that screen name?

When you make new friends online, how do you know if they are trustworthy? Can you really afford to get close to them, or are Internet friendships best kept very casual?

As with any new relationship, go slowly and proceed with caution. Keep the topics of conversation neutral and safe never discuss anything personal with someone you do not know. Be instantly suspicious if your new friend begins questioning you about your finances.

If you have been conversing with someone for a while and feel a connection, you may decide you want to take the friendship a step further. You may begin to share more personal details of your life, or you may begin making plans to meet each other in person.

Take smart measures to protect yourself

Before taking this step towards increased intimacy, be sure to reasonably protect yourself. First of all, try to validate your new friend's identity and ensure they really are who they say they are. Search records from the Department of Motor Vehicles in your friend's area and see if you can locate a license or identification card that matches the name, date of birth, physical description, and address of your new friend. If you cannot find a matching motor vehicle record, try voter registration records.

One of the best ways to protect yourself is to conduct an online background check of your friend. Any court documents from judgments, divorces, or lawsuits should contain some sort of identifying information you can verify. Criminal history checks will normally provide you with a date of birth and physical description, including any major scars or tattoos.

There are also specialized background check companies, such as Net Detective, who for a small fee, give you the ability to search all of the above records and more. You must do a little sleuth work of your own, though, and find out some important key identifiers from your new friend so you will know when you have found him or her.

Meeting on the Internet can be exciting. You must just ensure you go about it prudently, and protect yourself until you have solid facts reinforcing your ability to put your trust into your new friend.

Find Out Information on a Business Before You Sign on the Dotted Line

Nearly everyone has heard the horror stories a business takes your money and runs for the hills without ever providing the expectations set forth in the original agreement. How many times have you heard about someone who was having their home remodeled, only to have the contractor disappear with the money and a half-finished house? Or perhaps the job was finished, but the work so shoddy that someone else had to be hired to fix it. Maybe you wanted to open a retirement account and sought out a company that would help you invest your money, providing you with a healthy retirement down the road. Later on, you found out the firm had gone bankrupt, and the proprietor had absconded with your nest egg. Buying an existing business can pose potential problems and opportunities for fraud as well. The seller may show you a profit-and-loss statement, but how do you know they have not doctored the books to make the business appear more profitable than it really is? How do you find out if it will earn enough to support your family? Arm yourself with the power of knowledge Your ability to make sound financial and business decisions relies solely on the quality and accuracy of information you obtain. You may find something that looks great on the surface, but what happens when you dig deeper? Are you just as enthusiastic as when you first started out, or have you been provided with information that now makes you skeptical? The success of your financial future depends largely upon making informed decisions, especially when you are parting with large sums of your money. In order to ensure you have the best information available, you need become proactive and take matters into your own hands. Invest in online resources to protect your financial health There are many ways to investigate a business to uncover its business practices and level of profitability. The Internet offers access to an array of various public records to help you achieve that goal. Instead of spending countless hours searching through millions of websites trying to find information that is pertinent to you, invest in a records check or background check service such as Net Detective. You will be able to search specific businesses or people to find out precisely the information you need, without wasting your time sorting through useless data. Whether you want to investigate the past practices of your investment counselor, find out if he has ever been investigated for fraud, or ensure that a business you are planning to purchase lives up to its claims, an online background search can provide you with the tools you need to make an informed decision. These services work by providing you easy access via your home computer to millions of public records. Rather than trying to track each of these records manually such as tax returns or criminal histories save yourself time and hassle by completing your search through powerful investigative databases, such as Net Detective.

Reverse Phone Search: How You Can Find Out Who's Hiding Behind Any Phone Number

Got a phone number but don't know who it is? Maybe you've seen strange numbers showing up on your teenager's cell phone bill. Or maybe you picked up a number to call about an investment - but you suspect a scam. Or maybe you found a mysterious number in your wife or husband's things. For dozens of reasons, we find ourselves with a telephone number - but no name.

You're itching to find out who it is. Not just for curiosity's sake. The safety of your family or the security of your bank account could be at stake. You need a way to discover just whose phone number you have.

There's good news. You've got options. I'm a professional writer and researcher. I've discovered four different ways you can find out who's hiding behind any phone number. You can:

- Call, pretending to be someone else
- Look it up in a published crisscross directory
- Befriend (or trick) someone at the phone company
- Go online and search

Let's see what's involved with each approach and discover when they work best...

Call the Number

It's the simplest thing you can do. Pick up the phone and call. But pretend to be someone else to avoid recognition. When they answer, ask for a person with an unusual name not likely to be there. Say something like "Hello, is Lilly Becky there? No? Are you absolutely sure? Well, who am I talking to then?" Be a little forceful. Even sound angry, as if you think they're lying to you. This approach can rattle the other person and make them reveal their identity.

Avoid this one if you're not comfortable acting. And make sure you don't call from a number that can be traced back to you!

Look in a Crisscross Directory

Crisscross Directories have been around since the late 1800s. They're like phone directories. But they organize their listings by phone number, or street address, instead of name. These directories are still available in print form even though most of the information is also now available by computer.

Such cross-references are primarily designed for business use. Usually, sales departments rely on them to conduct direct marketing, build lists of sales leads and gather business intelligence.

The drawback is that they're expensive - costing in the hundreds of dollars or more. Still, you can usually find copies in your library, especially for the local area you live in. If you're looking beyond your own town, you probably won't be able to use the free version in the library.

Get an Inside Connection

Having a buddy on the inside of the phone company was classic approach for TV detectives. If you recall the Rockford Files or Mannix or any other old private eye show, they were forever pulling over to a pay phone and calling their friend, Ginger or Susie or Maggie, at the telephone company. The friend would dutifully give them whatever information the PI needed to pursue the case.

Interestingly, this method actually works - even if it's a little on the shady side. If you know someone at the phone company, you can probably talk them into helping.

Unfortunately, they probably won't help you once a week like on the TV shows. At some point your friend's better judgment will take over. You'll be left with nothing but numbers again. (Makes you wonder, doesn't it, just what the detective had that you don't)

21st Century Answers - The Internet Search Solution

When it comes to finding out who's hiding behind a phone number, the best way I've found is online search. Yet, search takes time. And not finding what you want quickly gets very frustrating.

To help, a number of businesses exist to make reverse phone searching quicker and easier. These businesses have already found the best sources for reverse phone searching. They take you directly to the databases that have the information you need. You can find out names, addresses, and much more, starting with just a phone number.

Some of these Reverse Phone Lookup services are free. The better ones cost a little. Quality always does, in my experience.

If, in your case, it's not that important to get accurate information fast, then give the free services a shot. They're mostly supported by pay for performance advertising, like Adsense, which doesn't earn them much. That means the free services rarely have the money to invest either in buying data access or in creating more usable interfaces.

In my case, as a professional, getting quality information quickly is important. I pay the small fee and get reliable information.

But, even if I didn't write for a living and were just casually looking up phone numbers from time to time, I'd still go with a paid database service. The cost is minimal. Often a small, one-time fee covers one to three years or even longer. If I only looked up a number once or twice a year, it would still be worth it in time saved.

Final Word

As important as it can be, finding out personal information with just a phone number used to be nearly impossible. Today it can be quick and easy. I've found four approaches that work, but one proved the simplest and most effective. It's using a quality, reverse-phone-search service online.

In a future article I'll talk about some of the reasons reverse phone search can be so important in these times. You might be surprised to hear how it not only can satisfy curiosity, it could even save your life.

Find Out About Your Partner without Snooping Through Their Things

No matter how solid our relationships are, every one of us has had a moment in time where we doubt the honesty of our partner. Usually such a feeling of distrust is brought about by a sudden change in behavior. Perhaps your loved one has suddenly lost weight, made new friends, or is staying out late after work. Maybe he or she seems to be taking more phone calls in private than usual, or just seems to be daydreaming more. Most of the time these are innocent changes that occur as part of the growing process, but they are certain to breed insecurity with the one left waiting at home. How can you find the answers without getting caught? As soon as questions arise about our partners, we want answers as quickly. We need to put the fears to rest, or immediately confirm them so we can deal with the problem. One of the oldest forms of spying on a partner has been the act of snooping through their belongings. From going through receipts and credit card bills to checking telephone records and hacking into their e-mail accounts, a suspicious lover will do almost anything to get to the bottom of things. However, these actions can be dangerous. If you are snooping through your partner's belongings, you are most likely suspicious that he or she is being dishonest, but you are not yet ready for a confrontation over it. So what happens if you get caught? At times, snooping is not discreet, and it opens the window to possible discovery. Snooping also may not provide the proof that is so desperately sought. Discover the truth without risking your c over There is a better, faster, more discreet way to find out what your partner has been doing outside of your home. A legal, discrete computer background check can tell you a great deal - without the risk of getting caught with your hand in the cookie jar. Knowing where to start can be tricky, though. You would have to determine which records you wanted to search, and then try to figure out where to go to access those records. Or you could simply use an online background check service, such as Net Detective. For a small fee, these companies will allow you to access their substantial national databases. You can quickly and privately find out all the information you need in just one place. Not only will this save you hours of picking through the mail, the trash, and the laundry, but the efficiency of it will save you plenty of nail-biting as well. You will have a whole host of information available at your fingertips, which can even include insight into your partner's previous relationships. Regardless of what kind of information you seek, you will be able to put your fears to rest almost immediately with an online investigation service.

The Reverse Cell Phone Search

THE REVERSE CELL PHONE SEARCH A phone chirps loudly in the background, with its ring tone revealing that it is your mobile. More than likely, you are preoccupied with several tasks, ranging from returning business emails to finishing dinner for your family. By the time you have an ability to reach for your cell phone, you missed the call, and the person on the other end did not bother to leave a message. Much to your dismay, you find that your cell phone’s highly advanced caller ID service was unable to detect an identity. Could the call have been from a stranded family member? Perhaps simply a wrong number? Let us hope it is not a probable client who came across your company’s brochure! Thanks to modern technology, you no longer have to sit in wonder about the unnamed call to your cell phone. Even if you do not have access to cell phone records, there is a proven way to match a number with a face or place. Perhaps you may want to investigate who is making prank or threatening calls to your phone, or you may want to look into suspicious phone numbers appearing on your spouse’s cell phone bill. By performing a reverse cell phone search, you may be able unravel the mystery and get the answers you need. The overall process of reverse cell phone searches is rather straight forward. With this method, you use a cell phone number to find a person, instead of using their identity to find that number. Since cell phone numbers are not typically listed in your local directory, performing a reverse search on a land line is often easier. However, this is where internet enhancement comes into play. Those looking to conduct a reverse cell phone search online to obtain cell phone records have several different options. The first one is very simple, effective, and will not cost you a dime. Through the popular search engines, such as Google and Yahoo, you can use their databases to derive cell phone and identify information. View it from this perspective. New content is frequently placed online and detected by the search engines, which includes cell phone numbers and records. For example, most newspapers will publish classified ads or even entire editions on a website. If someone lists their phone number, there is a great chance that the phone number has been indexed within the internet and is now available for search. Try conducting a reverse cell phone search by playing with the search box of your preferred engine. Many websites have different criteria of how a phone number should be entered into their database. Be sure to try a few different variations. Some may enter a cell phone number in the manner of 1112223333, while others may prefer a format such as (111) 222-3333. Exercising a bit of creativity in your reverse cell phone search will certainly assist along the way. Using the search engines as free tool is a great way to begin your own reverse cell phone number search. However, to achieve more accurate and detailed cell phone records, you may wish seek professional assistance. Several online experts specialize in reverse cell phone searches, with services ranging from affordable to very expensive. The quality and the depth of the information they provide your reverse cell phone search is very valuable, as you obtain access to their entire database of information and records. In fact, their cell phone records databases can give you a myriad of relevant information, such as personal information, address history, current location, and wireless provider. Paying a fee that quickly produces accurate, detailed information may prove worthwhile in the end, especially in terms of saving you time and energy. A reverse cell phone search can be used for many reasons, such as checking up on your teenager or merely tracking down that phone call you missed. Gathering personal information from a cell phone was once perceived as impossible, but it now can be discovered with speed and accuracy when you access the power of internet databases for reverse cell phone searches.

Small Business Background Checks

Background Checks: How They Can Help Better Protect Your Small Business Against Crime

If you run a small business, you've got a lot of worries. Besides all the normal concerns like competition and pricing and location and customer service... now security has become increasingly important. You face the threat of theft, fraud, embezzlement, scams... the list seems almost endless.

When you're in business, you can run up against...

- Suppliers who provide shoddy goods that you don't discover until after you've paid for them
- Customers whose orders you promptly fill but who wiggle out of paying
- Employees who rob you of everything from supplies and equipment to cash and services.

The Federation of Small Business - a British business group reported that over half (58%) of all small businesses in the UK suffered at least one crime during a recent two year period. They concluded:

"Crime, and the fear of crime, can directly impact on day to day business activities. It can damage a business image, resulting in the loss of existing customers and deterioration in the quality and range of services offered by the business, which will limit turnover (profits) and
restrict business development."

When you run a small business, it's up to you to look out for your company. But how?

Background Search Services on the Web Provide an Economical Answer

Many of the problems that small businesses face in trying to deter crime can be helped with information available on the Internet. You can use 21st Century technology to get the better of the crooks and thieves and scam artists.

But if you're not familiar with whats available, you may not realize all the important things you can find out with a good background checking service.

It used to be expensive to check into someone's background to see if they were hiding anything. You had to hire a private detective or pay big bucks to an investigative agency. Not today - not with Internet databases so readily available to us. Some of the services are free. However, a business will benefit most from the more in-depth background checking services.

These higher quality services usually charge a fee to subscribe, but it's smaller than you'd expect - especially considering the volumes and usefulness of the information they provide. A year of service is often less than what you'd pay to bring in lunch for a staff meeting. Plus, the paid services are kept more up-to-date and are typically faster and easier to use.

Sometimes referred to as Internet Detective sites, or Personal Search sites, the website based services give you the low-down on all kinds of formerly-hidden information.

Here are the types of things you can and should be looking into for the protection of your business...

Criminal Background Checks

Any time your business is dealing with someone you don't know, you should run a quick check to see if they have any history of criminal activity. It's very simple to find out about:

- Criminal Records
- FBI Records
- Prison Records
- Sex Offender Status

You have access to their entire criminal history if there is one. With violence in the workplace such a major issue, a simple criminal check can be a very effective way to avoid problems before they happen.

Background Check for Employment (Pre-Employment Screening)

If you've got a small business, you should be pre-screening each person you consider hiring. No matter how professional, or how harmless, they appear.

A small print shop franchise in Florida hired an especially friendly fellow as their bookkeeper after the owner got too busy to handle it himself. The new employee didn't offer much in the way of references but he sounded like he knew what he was doing and - big plus - he agreed to work cheap. The owner figured he would save money hiring the guy. He figured wrong.

The bookkeeper drained more than a hundred thousand dollars out of the company before they found him out. Turned out he'd previously been charged with embezzlement. Something a criminal background check would have quickly turned up.

Background Check Existing Employees - Make it a Condition of Employment

You shouldn't check only new hires. Over time, employees can develop habits and get involved in activities you'd never suspect. So you should regularly check on existing employees. Note: this is something you should get legal advice for - but generally if it's a condition of employment and you let them know in writing, it's not invading privacy. You entrust employees with company funds or materials that can be stolen, or negotiating and purchasing power that can be abused. Keeping an eye on existing employees is just being prudent.

Too many small business owners think of their company as an extension of their family. They don't want to think ill of the people they give jobs to. Truth is, most employees are trustworthy. They just want to do a good job and get paid fairly - but they see you as the boss, not their daddy. Even in real families, the black sheep will have absolutely no conscience about turning your good will to their good fortune. Don't be so kindly that you end up getting taken for everything you own.

Background Check Each Company or Individual You Do Business With

You should investigate every supplier or contractor who serves your business. If the possibility of harm exists, then you need to know if someone you're in business with is likely to harm you. You can check credit, check backgrounds of the owners and managers, check the company itself for any past criminal or questionable activity.

Also check customers if your dealings with them permit. Most non-retail businesses will have the opportunity to look at their customer's backgrounds for any warning signs. Don't get left without payment for your products or services when a quick look up on the computer can resolve questions.

Check both suppliers and customers out. It's just good business.

Real Estate Business Transactions Are Often Easy Targets for Crime

Real Estate often involves significant investment, both initially and over time. Whether you're a landlord or a tenant, you need to check out those with whom you're doing business. Using a background check service, you can:

- Check Credit and determine if Social Security Numbers provided are valid
- Check Tenants for past problems or criminal activity
- Check Landlords for tenant actions against them or other legal problems

Charity and Other Community Support

Businesses frequently get called on to support their community. Charitable organizations often solicit donations, many times in sizable amounts. Before you give money freely to anyone, be sure they're legitimate by running a background check on their organization and the principals involved. Otherwise the help you think you're providing could turn around and hurt your business.

Final Word

Running a small business is more of a challenge today than ever before. Use online database search services to help you protect your business and keep you, your customers and your employees more secure.

Find Information about People Fast and Discreetl

Find Information about People Fast and Discreetly Human nature lends itself towards curiosity, and most of us would love to know where our old friends are. With the advent of the internet, you can now enjoy the fun of finding out what your old friends have been doing. Or imagine standing at a crossroads in your life, as you prepare to exchange lifetime vows with your fiance. Hopefully you have already learned the secrets your significant other carries. However, what would it be like to get married - only to find out later that your spouse had hidden his devastating financial history? How shocking would it be to learn your spouse has children from a previous marriage that you knew nothing about? Answer your questions with discrete, legal investigations No one likes to snoop around in the lives of our loved ones, especially because we run the risk of getting caught. However, there is a way to find out answers regarding other people's pasts without risking discovery. For example, Net Detective is an online database that allows you to discreetly search publicly available records uncovering the secrets of your friends and family. Friends, families, or foes all the information you need is online Having important financial or legal information in your hands may very well allow you to make a good decision, or prevent you from making a bad decision in both your personal and professional lives. The importance of this information can be handed down to your children as well, since you will be able to stay better informed about your children's playmates, their families, and the neighborhood as a whole. Search your own family history. Learn why your mother no longer talks to her sister, or track down long lost relatives. Find out who has had babies, who has died, who has gotten married or divorced. Look up an old friend from high school, even if she has an unlisted phone number. Track down your old buddies from the military. Find that mysterious friend you made, but unfortunately lost track of while on sabbatical in Florida. All of these searches can be done easily, from the privacy of your own home and without anyone else's knowledge. The best part is that it is completely legal. If you have ever wanted to learn more about your family tree, track down your high school sweetheart, or find out if any of your old friends ever ended up in jail, Net Detective will give you the tools you need to find the answers for yourself. How you choose to proceed from there is entirely up to you. You may find yourself reunited with your college flame, or locate a long lost uncle. The possibilities are endless.

Online Dating Background Checks: Tips and Possible Red Flags to Look For Before Meeting your Date

Online dating can be a great way to meet a potential mate. However, because online dating involves meeting up with someone whom you really don't know anything about, it is best for your safety to do some research before your date. Performing an online background check provides you with an unbiased and unaltered source of information on your potential date. Not only can a background check clue you into a date's past, it also can be performed anonymously without your date ever knowing that you checked up on him or her.

Once you have the results of your background check, you can then decide if this particular person is right for you, and most importantly, safe to be dating. However, this final step in using online background checks effectively is often the most challenging because many people don't know what possible signs to look for that a potential date may be undesirable or unsafe. Thus, PeopleFinders.com is providing a list of potential dating "red flags" that may show up on a background check.

Aliases: If your potential date has aliases other than those related to common nick names (like Bob and Robert), he or she may have had a questionable past.

Residences: We all have to move sometimes because of our jobs or our families. However, if your date has moved several times in the last year or quite often, this may be a sign that he or she hasn't been a good tenant, changes jobs often or has had problems in a particular city or town. In these cases, it is best to inquire with previous landlords and neighbors to ascertain the reason for the moves.

Criminal History: You can't always take someone's word that they haven't had any problems with the law in the past. Therefore, executing a background check can provide you with information on any past criminal history. Obviously, everyone has a different tolerance level for incidents that happened in a potential date's past but some offenses are major indicators that your date is not safe to be dating including convictions for domestic abuse, breaking and entering, assault and battery, and murder.

Marital History: With a background check, you can check the marital status and history of your potential date. It goes without saying that potential dating candidates that are still married are not good choices. Dates who have been in multiple or extremely short marriages may also not be good candidates to date due to their history of instability. In the case of these abnormal circumstances, it is best to contact neighbors, ex-spouses and relatives to uncover the details of why the marriages failed.

Death Index: If your date is listed as being deceased, your date may possibly be lying about his or her identity. In cases of suspected identity theft, it is best to contact possible relatives and neighbors to obtain more information.

Property Ownership: Your potential date may claim to own his or her home but a background check may say otherwise. These situations can usually be resolved by contacting a state or governmental agency to determine the correct property owner. If your date is lying about owning his or her home, you should steer clear.

Possible Relatives: A background check often lists individuals who may be related to your search subject. If your date is omitting information about his or her family members, such as not mentioning having children, a red flag should definitely be raised.

www.rhazeinc.com

Searched for yourself lately?

A world of information at your fingertips, and what's the first thing you do? Search for yourself of course.. Whether it's out of curiosity, or your own big brother style internet conspiracy theory, people like to find out what the world knows about them.According to a 2004 survey by MSN and Harris Interactive, more people search for themselves on search engines than they do others. 39% of people to be precise, with 26% seeking out a family member, and 36% search for friends they have lost touch with.So what did you find when you searched for yourself? Published articles perhaps? Committee listings for a club? Did you find anyone searching for you...? Chances are you didn't.99% of large internet registers for finding friends and family are not searchable through search engines. Spiders (the robots that run around collecting documents for the search engines) can not register on a site, can not use search features, or perform any other amazing feats. They require an openly available document to retreive information. The only way people can find each other through a registry is if they both, or perhaps one and a talkative mutual friend, register at the same place, as they certainly won't be getting a search engines help to find each other. Even if you are fortunate enough to have both people registered on the same site (keeping in mind that there's 100's of registries), there's sometimes a fee involved just to make contact.So how can you use the search engines to your advantage? After all, the sheer numbers of people searching for themselves and others on search engines is amazing, and demands attention. The answer may be as simple as your ISP. Did you get a free 5-10MB hosting account when you signed up for your internet connection? Have you ever used it? If you're searching for someone, or if someone is searching for you, a home page can be a great way of helping those using search engines to find each other. A simple page with some details about yourself, and a page dedicated to each person you are looking to regain contact with, all published on your free web space. With just a little bit of knowledge about web sites and search engines, you can have them beating down your door to grab your pages, and you're away.Now I understand that this may seem like a difficult task to some who haven't done much in the way of web publishing, but trust me when I say it's not very difficult at all. If you can use a word processor, you can make a web page. There is plenty of information on the internet about how to build a simple page, and how to get listed in search engines, so we won't even try to cover it here.Now if those you are seeking are one of 39% who search for themselves, or one of 36% of people are searching for you, you have a simple way of finding each other and making contact for free - just don't forget to put some contact details on your web site! http://www.rhazeinc.com

Employer Background Checks and the Driver's Privacy and Protection Act

Background checks are more than just a good idea for employers in certain industries—they are the law, and your only protection against a negligent hiring lawsuit. But there is a flip side to background checking that requires employers to provide security measures for the subject being checked as well.
After a wake of crimes stemming from access to public driver's records in the first half of the 1990's, the Federal Driver's Privacy and Protection Act, or DPPA, was enacted. The goal of the DPPA was to provide protections for people subject to driving background checks. The act had a significant impact on many businesses, as driving background checks are an integral part of safe and secure business practices.
Businesses most affected by the DPPA are those in the transportation industries, those who require employees to drive either personal or company vehicles as part of their job, or those who provide company vehicles for employee use either full or part time. For these businesses (as well as many others) a background check which includes a check into the employee's driving record is an absolute must.
Whenever a company needs to check the driving record of a current or potential employee, they have a responsibility to the employee to do so legally and safely. In short, employers must follow the protocol of the DPPA. The first requirement of the protocol is necessity; a company must show that they have a legitimate business need for the information contained in the driver's record. Alternatively, a company can hire a licensed firm to access the information on their behalf, as licensed investigators and security services are also allowed to access driver's records.
Besides legitimacy of need, companies must
Obtain the consent of the individual (without consent, access is severely limited and will not include any identifying information)
Complete an application and provide the employee's name, address, social security number or license number, and contact information
List the representing firm and/or business name
Sign and date the request
Send it into the appropriate DMV with the appropriate fee
Businesses can conduct a driver's record check on their own, but many find it is in their best interests to hire a private company to handle all their background checking needs. A specialized company is well-versed in the legalities of driver's record and background checking, and is current on changes and protocols of the Driver's Privacy and Protection Act. In the eyes of many businesses, the safest and most efficient way for them to manage necessary driver's record checks is to partner with a qualified professional. http://www.rhazeinc.com

New Tenant Credit Checks

If you are a landlord looking to conduct credit checks for tenant screening don't just settle for a basic credit check . Now you can obtain a real credit report. A full credit report tells you the whole story.You will need your applicant's authorization in writing which is typically standard on many rental applications. If your rental application doesn't have a credit report authorization release you will need to obtain one. Landlords need to be careful these days. With more and more foreclosures and people turning to rentals you can't be too safe. You must make wise financial decisions when it comes to renting your property.Most property managers and rental unit managers always run credit checks for tenant screening. If you are a landlord with one, two or a few rentals, and don't run credit checks you are playing Russian Roulette with your rental.Now it's fast and easy to get a credit check for tenant screening
http://www.rhazeinc.com

Search engine for locating someone

So I decided to start a search engine for locating someone. I heard this was an area that was growing and want to test it for myself. it is located at www.rhazeinc.com. Once there you can type in the name of the person you are looking for. The search engine will pull up anyone with that name for a particular area. you can also search by phone number. I used it to do a search on myself and was amazed with the results. Go there and try it

Searching For Someone

There are a bunch of reasons why people try to locate someone. It could be just to find an old friend, Check out the background of someone you are dating, trying to collect monies owed or a host of other reasons.

What are some of the best ways to do this. I think this is soemthing that is really starting to catch on as people are proctting themselvs in ways they could not before the internet. It is also becoming a good way to earna living loctaing people for someone who does not know hoe to go about finding someone for themself.

I wonder just how many websites are dedicated to locating and searching for people. has anyboby tried to find someone successfully. How did you go about it. Did you use a people search engine like http://www.rhazeinc.com or did you use google or a service.