How Can I Locate an Email Address for Someone?

By: Caroline Roberts

Have you ever wondered, how can I locate an email address for someone? If you haven't e-mailed this person in a long time and don't have their current address on file or you can't find them through your connections on social networks, you're going to need to do some digging.

Don't assume the person uses his real name. Many people use online "handles." If you have an old e-mail address for this person and it no longer works, simply search for the online handle, and you might find a different result. Perhaps this person switched from yahoo.com to gmail.com and never forwarded his messages.

Try the "deep Web." The deep Web includes all the databases that are accessible online but never come up in standard Web searches. Pipl.com is only one example of a deep Web search that might lead to more clues.

Use quotation marks. Contacting a person gets much easier if you put his name in quotation marks. That way, you can remove any possible middle names or extra words and get straight to page results featuring that name. If the person you are trying to contact uses a middle initial, include that as well for even more accurate results.

Be patient. You might not find the right person on your first try, especially if the name is common. If you choose to write the person, don't write your letter assuming that the recipient is the person you are looking for. Keep your information short and to the point, and ask if the e-mail address is indeed associated with the person and that you are trying to contact them. This way, if you reach the wrong recipient, they won't be confused by a long and friendly letter.

Realize that, if you stalk, you will get caught. Stalking is serious business, and it is different from trying to track down a long-lost family member or college pal. The reason it is easy to find someone's e-mail address is that almost all of your activity can be tracked online. If the person you contact is not happy about it, then he can notify the police.

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