The internet has changed the way we do things, including searching for people. With a little work, anyone can find information about coworkers, friends, family, classmates, or even ancestors. As long as you have
The internet has changed the way we do things, including how we search for people. With a little work, anyone can find information about coworkers, friends, family, classmates, or even ancestors. As long as you have some contact information, you can often locate whoever you’re looking for.
However, there are times when finding someone can prove tricky—for example, when the person has no presence online, uses an alias, moves frequently, or simply doesn’t want to be found. Debtors, individuals evading legal obligations, or people who deliberately obscure their identity make the search significantly more complex.
That’s where specialized platforms like Enformion come in. With advanced people search and investigations tools, Enformion enables users to locate virtually anyone—including those who try hardest to disappear. Before exploring how Enformion helps, let’s level-set on what a people search actually is.
What Is a People Search?
A people search is a specialized search engine designed to help you find individuals online. Think of it as a Google-style search exclusively focused on people and their associated details. People search tools aggregate information from thousands of public and private data sources—such as court records, social media, utilities, property filings, and more—and surface it in one place.
Common consumer-oriented examples include:
- Spokeo
- Whitepages
- BeenVerified
- Intelius
- TruthFinder
These services often provide basic information for personal use cases. Enformion, however, goes significantly deeper—powering investigations, collections, legal research, government use cases, compliance-focused workflows, and enterprise-level verifications through advanced matching, identity resolution, and proprietary data signals.
With a people search tool, you can uncover information such as:
- Personal details
- Contact information
- Previous and current addresses
- Social media profiles
- Employment and professional history
- Utility records
- Court and criminal records
- Loan and credit-related applications (where permissible)
- Marital and property records
- Location movement patterns
- Associated persons and family members
- Assets and property holdings
Reasons to Perform a People Search
- Find a Long-Lost Friend or Relative
Whether you’re trying to reconnect with a former classmate or track down a relative who has moved, consumer people search tools like PeopleFinders.com or Spokeo can often surface updated phone numbers, names, or addresses.
More advanced tools—like Enformion—can trace movement history, uncover alias usage, and identify additional associated individuals if the trail has gone cold.
- Locate Missing Debtors (Skip Tracing)
Dealing with a debtor who doesn’t want to be found is one of the biggest challenges for creditors, collection agencies, and investigators. If someone owes money and disappears, a simple Google search won’t help.
Enformion’s skip tracing tools combine:
- Address histories
- Phone number intelligence
- Utility connections
- Alias and identity resolution
- Asset clues
- Real-time activity indicators
This gives collectors a comprehensive profile necessary to make contact and resolve outstanding balances.
- Investigate Workplace Theft or Fraud
Employee theft is a growing concern. Studies (such as those from Hayes International) show that employee-related theft incidents significantly outpace shoplifting activity.
People search and background investigation tools can help organizations:
- Verify identity and employment history
- Surface criminal or court records
- Detect inconsistencies in job applications
- Flag multiple identities or suspicious patterns
Having more complete information reduces risk and protects both the company and its employees.
- Find People Who Don’t Want to Be Found
Attorneys, insurance investigators, and government agencies often need to locate individuals who are avoiding communication.
People search tools can be used to find:
- Individuals avoiding child support or alimony
- Witnesses who have moved
- Suspects or persons of interest
- Individuals committing identity fraud
- People fleeing financial or legal obligations
Advanced tools like Enformion excel in these cases by pulling from deep data sources and leveraging identity graph technology to uncover connected identities—even when someone attempts to hide.
How to Perform a People Search
Just like a standard search engine, you’ll need some information to begin. The more you provide, the more accurate your results will be. Helpful details include:
- First and last name
- Previous or current city/state
- Phone number
- Email address
- Known associates
- Former addresses
- Age range
With this information, a people search tool can quickly identify the correct individual—even across thousands of similar names.
Ready to Try It?
If you’d like to learn more about how a people search tool can support skip tracing, legal research, debt recovery, investigations, or identity verification, you can start a free trial at Enformion today.
Enformion provides professional-grade data depth far beyond what consumer sites like PeopleFinders.com, Spokeo, or BeenVerified offer—making it a trusted platform for enterprises, government agencies, and investigators.
