People Search, Web Search
Social Networks & Public Record News
Internet statistics show that people “Google” a person’s name around 50 million times per day.
Atlanta resident Brandyn Briley is a frequent “Googler”. She uses various web search engines like Google and Yahoo to lookup information on potential clients, her children and even herself.
Web 2.0 sites like Naymz.com and Ziggs.com now give people like Briley a tool to keep track of when another person is doing a web search on them.
Tim Demello, from Ziggs.com, says, “What it does for the individual is it really gives them a strong sense of who is out there tracking them.”
Demello compares the Ziggs technology to caller ID for the world wide web.
Whenever a person searches for and clicks on a Ziggs.com profile, the site sends the profile owner an email alert, detailing the searcher’s location, the web search engine that was used, and the search phrase that the person used to find the profile.
Demello noted, “If someone types their name into Google, we track that through and send them a real time e-mail saying you are being searched from Chicago at 8:52 on a Friday.”
Ziggs can trace web searches of its users’ profiles down to the street and block level.
However, Ziggs won’t give you information about the name or address of the person doing the searching.
Demello said, “We don’t provide the name of the person searching, and the primary reason is that we believe very strongly in privacy.”
Source: CBS46.com
Filmmaker Jim Killeen is the producer of a new documentary film called Google Me.
Most people have googled their names, but how many people go to the extreme of actually meeting their “google twins”?
That’s the whole idea behind Google Me.
In the video below News.com reporter Kara Tsuboi interviews Jim Killeen and learns about the six other Jim Killeens he’s met through the Google search engine.
The UK’s Times Online is reporting that the CIA is using servers equipped with Google search engine technology to share information gathered on suspects.
US government agencies like the National Security Agency have purchased servers loaded with Google search technology to process information gathered by their network of spies around the world.
Google also provides the search engine technologoy for a Wikipedia-style site, called Intellipedia, where agents can post intelligence information about their targets that can be accessed and modified by other intelligence professionals.
Intellipedia allows agents to post intelligence information to a secured wiki forum that other spies can read, edit, and tag like other Web 2.0 collaboration sites.
Thus far 37,000 intelligence professionals have created accounts on Intellipedia, and the database now contains 35,000 articles.
Intellipedia is hosted by the director of national intelligence, Mike McConnell, and is available only to the CIA, the FBI, the National Security Agency, and other intelligence departments.
Source: Times Online
“Google hacking” is a term used to describe the use of specialized Google search queries along with advanced Google operators to find network security holes on websites and computer networks as well as personal information on people that the Google search engine has indexed. The webmasters and IT professionals that overlook these security vulnerabilities and exposed personal information, like names and passwords, allowing Google to index the information and make it available in search engine results are typically referred to as “Googledorks”
Johnny Long, author of Google Hacking for Penetration Testers volumes 1 and 2, is one of the foremost experts on hacking the Google search engine to find information on people and computer networks. He runs an online database of Google hack examples that can be used by both White Hat Hackers ( good hackers ); Black Hat Hackers ( malicious hackers ) as well as computer forensics professionals to find sensitive information through various Google searches.
Google searches can reveal a goldmine of sensitive personal and network information, including: network security vulnerabilities; error messages that reveal too much personal and network information; files that contain sensitive information about people; username and password files; login pages; sensitive directories; personal online shopping and ecommerce information; networked devices, like printers and video cameras; vulnerable files and web servers.
If you want to find out just how much information Google has indexed about you or your computer network, start practicing some of the the Google searches and advanced operators, using search terms that apply to you, family, friends or your own computer network.
You can access the Google hacks database @ ihackstuff.com
Google Maps has published this quick and informative YouTube.com video tutorial to help users learn some of the handy ways you can use their “Street View” feature to explore 360 degree street level images of major US cities.
Google has produced the following YouTube.com video clip to show people how to use their free 411 directory assistance service ( 1-800-GOOG-411 ) and explain its unique features.
Google is out to capture photo and video recordings of major US cities and their roaming Chevy Cobalt camera cars, equipped with Ladybug2 Sperical Cameras, are being spotted all over the United States.
Here are some interesting blog posts from gizmodo.com that discuss the Google Streetview project:
This Alpena News article discusses the anatomy of a Google people search –
OK, so that’s the fun part of “Googling.” Obviously, when I Google, most of the time it is related to work here at the newspaper. Take for instance Target Alpena’s new chief economic development officer Lee Shirey. Curious about the new hire and wanting to learn more, naturally I “Googled” his name.
Sure enough, Shirey has quite a few entries. From the Google search I could read some of his past reports and research, read minutes from Sault Ste. Marie Downtown Development Authority meetings and visit that DDA’s official Web site to learn more about his accomplishments while there — such as securing a Cool Cities designation for that community.
Another new interesting aspect to the internet are the popularity of personal biography sites such as “My Space” and Shirey can be found mentioned in some of that area as well.
As might be expected, he enjoys many of the same things like most of us do like hockey, the outdoors and being active in the community.
He also has an interesting hobby — paranormal investigation. After a little more “Googling” I learned he is a member of the Upper Peninsula Paranormal Research Society — a group dedicated to researching paranormal events.
Obviously this is a man with a wide range of interests and not just your ordinary CEO.
This week Target Alpena answered for the public the question of “Who you going call?”
It now seems only natural the answer: Lee Shirey.
Here is the link to the Professional Guide to Google Searches, Part II:
Want to make your people searches on Google more accurate? Take a look at this professional Google search guide, published by Our-Picks.com —
Copyright 2008 Skipease Free People Search
The skipease blog for free people search engines, public records and web research news.
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"Attempt the end, and never stand to doubt;
Nothing ’s so hard, but search will find it out."
— Robert Herrick