Tracing the Owner of the Email Address: Simple Means

When someone gets an email from an unknown sender, it’s only logical to wonder if this email can be trusted. Luckily, today it’s not at all difficult to find any information you need, including info on a person or a company behind a specific email address. You can use plenty of means for that, from a simple Google search to specialized email search tools.

Still, you should be aware that not all email lookup means are equally functional. Plenty of free methods, Google search included, may not bring any comprehensive results. Tools with a higher success rate often run on a commercial basis. Still, there is a solution to every challenge, so let’s first consider tools at your disposal — along with their pluses and minuses.

Start with a basic Google search

This is the most obvious step that, sadly, does not always bring adequate results. While no one can doubt the power of Google and the information it possesses, pasting an email address into its search box often brings confusing results. First, this major search engine can be confused by a standard email address logic, with plenty of identical elements, i.e., the universal @gmail.com. So, it may return you hundreds of results containing the ‘@gmail.com’ part. The first part — the one that truly matters – may not be displayed. Unless, of course, you are looking for an email that’s part of a huge corporation, like Microsoft.

Even though it’s not always fruitful, we still suggest you always start with a basic Google search. After all, it’s 100% free and does not take too much time. So, you have absolutely nothing to lose and a lot to gain if you get lucky. If you don’t, no worries; simply move on to other potential steps.

Look up emails on social media

The next logical (and totally free) suggestion is to lookup an email on social media. Log in to any platform, starting with Facebook, and go to its search tab. If you are trying to trace someone’s personal email, you may easily get lucky and find the person behind this account. If you had no luck with Facebook, try any other social media platform you’re using, starting with LinkedIn and Twitter, and wrapping up with Pinterest and Instagram. Even though Facebook and Instagram are one company, a user may have separate accounts on those. Besides, company pages are often registered via corporate emails.

Still, don’t bother creating new accounts on every social media you’re not currently using to look up someone’s email. Just like Google search, scanning social media with an unknown email is not a 100% sure means of finding this email’s owner. If you couldn’t find it quickly, save yourself some time and move on to more effective tools.

Check out professional contact tools

Recruiters are always on the lookout for potential candidates, checking and searching for contact details on a regular basis. You can use their experience and their contact tools — often, free of charge. If you try to find the best personal email finder, check out SignalHire first. This tool has millions of contacts in its database and offers the first five searches for free. If you need more than that, you’ll have to pay a subscription fee. But, those free searches can just be enough to find who’s hiding behind an unknown email.

Tools like these will give quite a lot of information on the email owner — if, of course, they have this info in their database. You will get the person’s full name, resume, and even links to social media accounts. When trying to verify someone’s professional identity with just an email at your disposal, contact databases are your best shot.

Make use of email finders

Aside from resume databases that offer extensive information on people and their contact details, there are simpler tools that offer exactly what they claim to — look up emails. If you know someone’s email, such tools may help you find a person behind it. All you have to do is enter an email address and click submit. The software will then perform a quick search and get back to you with the owner’s name. As simple as that.

Some of the most popular services of this kind include EmailChecker, MyEmailVerifier, and Pabbly Email Verification. Once again, the downside of this approach is that all of them are paid tools. The upside, of course, is their effectiveness. But, once again, note that these do not ensure a 100% success rate because some emails may not be registered in their databases. Still, the odds here are higher than with the basic Google search.

Get full report on sender’s IP

When looking for an extensive report on an email owner, looking up the owner’s IP address is the best shot. Tools like WhatIsMyIPAddress can run an email check, getting back to you with the owner’s name, location, and plenty of other details you can find useful. Once again, curious users are expected to open up their pockets. One search on WhatIsMyIPAddress costs almost $5, but if you really need a proper background check, it could be well worth it.

Checking up someone’s email for IP address and location could be useful if you think the person is not who she is claiming to be. This could be important for business communication, so the investment is often justified. Of course, if you are just trying to satisfy your curiosity, you’d better stick to free tools.

Any of these means can help you find the person behind an unknown email. And, even though some of these tools are not free, sometimes a fee is worth it. Besides, if you do not need to look up unknown emails every day, you may get lucky and come across a certain candidate resume with the email you’re trying to verify — while still on your free trial. Even if not, most of the tips we offered above do not cost anything but your time, so good luck searching!