How to Find Lost Friends or Loved Ones Online

By Jen D., February 1, 2017

There is nothing worse than losing contact with someone who matters to you. Sometimes loss of connection is purposeful or temporary, but it can become painful in the long term when one is unsure where your lost friend or loved one is, or how they are doing. Sometimes you’re left uncertain of their whereabouts, well-being, mental health, or if they are even alive. Whether this happens as a result of a disagreement, physical or mental health issue, misunderstanding, drug use, or a normal lapse in contact during a trying time, the desire to reconnect is powerful and hard to move past while questions hang in the air.

At socialcatfish.com we can find those who don’t want to be found- friends, family, foes, or even the identities of catfish claiming to be real people. If you believe your friend or family member can be found through your own search, try the following steps first.

Facebook: Facebook is popular and has a decent search window, you just need to know how to use it. Searching by name is a start, but if the name is common it can yield hundreds of results. Make sure to fine tune your search with a state, town, employer, or high school. If you know a friend of the person you’re searching for, enter their name and contact them for assistance. Or, to be more covert, you can directly search their friend’s list for the person in question’s name. For women, last names can change, with marriage, but first names are generally consistent.

Instagram or Twitter: If the person you’re searching for is under the age of 25, they may not use Facebook often or at all. Instagram has risen to popularity and is a good way to find people. Best to search for in google.com, it can be tricky as Instagram relies on user names which don’t always correlate with the person’s name. If you’re not sure whether they want to be found, try ‘following’ them on Instagram for a ‘soft’ opening.

Family & Friends: While people sometimes lose contact with their loved ones, they often keep in contact with at least one favorite person. Who do you know who might know the contact information or whereabouts of the person you’re searching for? If you believe they might not want you snooping around with their family member, offer your contact information to them, to give to the person when next they talk!

LinkedIn: Try LinkedIn or a google.com search for the person in question’s industry, if the business is at the forefront of their life. The drawback to LinkedIn is that without paying for the site, your search history is shown and people can see visitors to their profile.

Email Or Phone: Know their old email address or phone number? Even if it has been years, try to contact them there first. People get attached to their personalized email addresses or even their phone numbers and cell phone companies now often let numbers switch over with a change in carriers. You can call or email direct, enter those items into google.com, or even into social media searches. Keep your initial email, call, or text positive and to the point for a more likely response.

At socialcatfish.com we can search multiple platforms by name, email, and more should the above methods not find your friend or loved one!