Source finding
Identify a lead without exposing the wrong person
Reverse lookup is an investigative starting point. Public listings can be outdated, reassigned or intentionally misleading.
On this page
A safer lookup sequence
- Preserve the number, address, handle or domain exactly as received.
- Check the organization’s official site and public records before commercial directories.
- Confirm through a second channel. Caller ID and account names can be spoofed.
- Minimize publication of personal information that is not necessary to the story.
Public starting points
Organizations
official government directories and agency staff pages are stronger than scraped listings.
Domains
ICANN Lookup can show registration data when it is public.
Broadcast stations
FCC public files can connect many stations with licensees and records.
Archived identity
Internet Archive Wayback Machine can show how a public page changed over time.
Never publish an address or phone number merely because a directory associates it with a name. Verify identity and apply a clear public-interest test.
Sources
- official government directoriesusa.gov
- ICANN Lookuplookup.icann.org
- FCC public filespublicfiles.fcc.gov
- Internet Archive Wayback Machineweb.archive.org