How to Find An E-mail Address

If you know where a person works, most companies have web sites. Many of them have online directories of the e-mail addresses of staff. If someone works in a government position, their government e-mail address is public information. If you know the school a person attends, most schools have online directories. For graduates, there are often alumni directories. Here is a list of the most commonly used E-mail reverse directories:

• MESA - Meta E-mail Search Agent This does a search of many e-mail directories. If you don't find an address here, it still could exist, as there is no complete source on the Net.
• MIT Usenet Address Search Search an e-mail directory compiled from Usenet postings within a certain date range.
• Internet Address Finder There are lots of free searches here - not limited to e-mail searches!
• E-mail Address Finder This service searches many different databases.
• College E-mail Addresses This service helps to locate e-mail addresses for undergraduate and graduate students. There are many links with helpful hints.
• PostMinderSM From the developer: "The online equivalent of certified postal mail, PostMinderSM notifies you when emails are opened, read and forwarded. Digital certificate technology verifies emails with timestamps and datestamps. And advanced features, such as virus protection and self-destructing email, ensure your total control." This is a subscription service - it is not free. The service apparently works even when the recipient has disabled return receipts.
• Reverse E-mail Search Find the name behind an e-mail address; there's also a search to find ICQ e-mail addresses.
• FreshAddress.com If you change e-mail addresses, you can report it here. Then, if someone inquires about your new e-mail address, the service notifies you and you can say whether or not you want the party to have your new e-mail address.
• Free Email Address Directory This site has listings for over 1000 free e-mail services. User comments about various services are included. There are also resources to help you find e-mail addresses.
• If you're using Microsoft Windows XP, you can use the built-in search tool. Go to "Start" then choose the "Search" function and select "For People". From there, you can search your computer's address book, and various directories around the Web. You can import the results of your search into your address book.
• Don't neglect one important source of information: the search engines! You can try a search for an email address on Google or Yahoo! by simply entering the full email address into the search box - this will return all pages that contain that address.
• If all the above approaches fail, then it may be that the person you're looking for either doesn't have an email address, or has taken pains to make sure it isn't publicly visible online.