Search engines such as Google collect pages from across the web allowing us to search the content of those pages. This is great if we are searching for a person and their name can be found on a static web page. Unfortunately, standard search engines are unable to tap into the vast quantities of information on people located in online databases. For example, you won’t find White Pages listings using a Google Search. All this information untapped by search engines makes up the Deep Web.
White pages sites, electoral roll sites, and other well known databases make up an important part of the deep web for those of us looking for someone, and most of us can dig up a white pages site to search. The deep web however goes much further, and can be used to great effect in your people search.
For example, if you are looking for someone you went to school with, and know they went on to University to study medicine, it makes a lot of sense to try searching an online database of medical practitioners.
The deep web often makes uses of smaller more targeted information, and allows you to narrow searches quickly. For example, you are looker for a female by the name of Jane Doe. You have tried standard searches and white pages but had no luck. You assume she may have been married and hence changed her name.. so what can you do quickly online? If you have further information such as the University attended, chosen profession or occupation, or other interests, why not delve right into the deep web and try your search. Many deep web databases have advanced searches where a first name only search is possible. As the searchable data is usually smaller and often accompanied by additional information, you can sift through the results fairly quickly and often know whether you’ve hit a match or not.
Finding deep web sites is also fairly straight forward. To start with, you’ll find many categorised deep web people search sources through our online directory. Failing that, try a standard search on a search engine using your chosen topic (i.e. doctor) and add terms such as “database” “registry” “register” etc. You’d be surprised at just how many deep web databases there are out there in the UK containing people names and information.
Keep us in mind also when you come across a new deep web source. Let us know, so that we can add it to our directory and share it with others looking for someone.
Foot Note: In the not to distant future, we may be fortunate enough to not have to visit each site to run our deep web searches. New search technologies such as PIPL are attempting to do this automatically for us. Whilst it is in Beta at present, and only available for the USA and Canada, this sort of technology may make it easier to find people in the future.