Looking to Find The Owner of a Cell Phone Number?

Trying to place a name for an unknown mobile number?

There are more than a few methods for tackling this kind of problem, but in the end they all come down to one thing: if you want a truly consistent way to attach a name, address and other pertinent personal information in connection with a mysterious wireless number, your search will end on the website of a reverse cell phone directory.

Free Methods

Now you can always try to find this information without the aid of such a directory, but I have to tell you that you will have you work cut out for you. The reason I say that is because what you essentially will be trying to do is unearth private information.

And this is never an easy thing to do unless the user or owner of this information decides to voluntarily disclose it. The owner of this information - companies like AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, T-Mobile, etc. - sure aren't going to do this. They have no motivation to do so.

In the United States, a wireless caller's personal information is protected by certain privacy laws. So if you want to find out what a mobile phone carrier has on file in connection with the wireless number you wish to identify, you will need to agree to certain preconditions in regard to what you can and cannot do with this information, and also pay a nominal fee.

With that said, the only remaining option to find the identity of a cell phone number is if the user of the mobile number has somehow and somewhere disclosed this information on the Internet.

And how is this typically done?

One way is if the user has voluntarily entered his/her information into a type of reverse phone directory that collects information regarding cell phone users. But how many people do you know who are going to do this? Would you? I know that I personally wouldn't.

But such reverse phone directories do exist. A major downside is that they typically contain so few mobile numbers that the chances of finding personal details for the specific mobile number you are searching are very small indeed.

Another potentially free way to find the owner of a cell phone number without incurring a fee is to check social network sites like LinkedIn, Facebook and My Space. Some people who have pages on sites like these may voluntarily choose to disclose their personal details here. But this method takes a lot of luck, work and patience. Too much luck, work and patience to make it worth my while!

Don't even get me started on websites that offer “free” reverse cell phone lookup reports! I have yet to obtain a “free” report that reveals anything more than (a) the name of the telephone company that owns a wireless number and (b) the general location from where a mobile number was initially issued.

And that information doesn't help all that much!

Paid Methods

When you have had a belly full of monkeying around with free methods to find the owner of a cell phone number, you can always choose to work with a reverse cell phone directory that tells you up front that personal information connected to wireless numbers is going to cost a small sum of money.

Any reverse cell phone directory that truly has the ability to accurately identify a mobile phone user with the most up-to-date information available has done so by means of purchasing this information directory from each of the respective wireless carriers - the rightful owners of this information.

This kind of directory is an independently owned data company whose main function is to provide users with the most recent and accurate information in connection with all kinds of telephone numbers. Sure, the majority of their business is related to mobile numbers - but it also can identify the owners of landline, unlisted, fax, phone system and VoIP phone numbers.

In short, if a phone number can be identified, this is the place to get it done. So if you want access to the information a reverse cell phone directory has purchased from the major wireless phone companies, you will need to compensate the directory for the cost, time and effort it put into making this kind of report possible.

A single wireless number searchreport shouldn't set you back more than $15 or so. And most of the better directories also offer some kind of yearly subscription which will enable you to run unlimited people searches and an endless amount of reports for the owners of published landline numbers. On top of this, you may qualify for discounts of future mobile phone lookups.