The Six Best Methods to Find Hidden Social Media Accounts

Richard Grey - September 11, 2024

Whether you are concerned about a child’s safety or a partner’s integrity, there are many reasons why someone may wonder if a loved one has a hidden social. The unfortunate truth is that keeping an eye on others in a world where everyone is plugged in is getting harder. If a kid wants a social media profile for friends only, it could lead to suspicious friend requests.

You may hurt your relationship if you are found looking into hiring an investigator or trying to find alternate profiles online. So before you hire a private eye and install screen recording software, try some of these less invasive steps.

This article will look at some of the easiest and most effective ways to find hidden social media accounts. We will also briefly cover how to keep your footsteps covered the next time you decide to have an alternate account.

Table of Contents

There are several different ways you can look through someone’s information to see if they have a hidden social media profile. However, many of these methods are illegal or highly invasive. The steps below will not only keep you in good standing with your local law enforcement; they are all entirely free.

1. Search With Their Phone Number

If you cannot find a person by their name through social media platforms, they may use an alias or keep their name off public search results. To help narrow the results and improve your chances of finding a hidden profile, try to enter the phone number into varying social media sites.

Even if you search a place like LinkedIn, you may find clues about the person that can help uncover any alternative profiles they may be using. Sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter will show a profile off a phone number, though it is worth trying on any social media platform that you think they may be on.

The likelihood of finding a hidden account through a phone number is not incredibly high, particularly if they are trying to keep out of sight of concerned family members or friends. However, if a person is not overly cautious of their profile details, they may have a number linked to an account they would rather not have found.

2. Use CheckPeople.com

It is undeniably thrilling to put on your Sherlock Holmes cap and carefully skim through social media accounts. Unfortunately, digital detectives are not as valuable as they once were. At the time of this article, the king of collecting information is the dozens of people search engines found on the internet.

One of the most trustworthy and efficient sites is CheckPeople, which offers a comprehensive report on any individual you look into. Be wary of how you use a search service and ensure that you stay within the legal guidelines of the Fair Credit and Reporting Act (FCRA.)

To use CheckPeople, you must enter the person’s full legal name, followed by their general location. The site will then bring up a list of relevant people, followed by extensive public records.

A search on CheckPeople can bring back the following results:

Criminal history
List of relatives
Social media profiles
Name and former aliases
List of known addresses
Traffic incidents
Sex offender status
Dating profiles
List of known phone numbers

Similarly, you can also use their phone number with a reverse phone search. A reverse phone search will allow you to enter a cell number and bring back a list of people who have had the number. This method brings more refined results than a people search, which may benefit those searching for someone with a popular name.

If you are concerned about your information being publicly available, you can request that it be removed from the site.

3. Use Search Engines (Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo)

If you don’t have a grasp of a person’s movements online, searching for their name, phone number, or email on different search engines may help. Using a combination of platforms, such as Google, DuckDuckGo, or Ask, can bring varied results.

For the most accurate results, try to put quotation marks around the keywords you are searching. For instance, if you are looking up social media profiles for Sarah Samuels, you might type in “Sarah Samuels Facebook” or “Sarah Samuels profiles.” Use information regularly found on profiles, such as their location or email.

4. Do a Reverse Image Search

If you are still without new leads, start collecting a few commonly used photos on their social media. While some people will not use their regular pictures on a hidden profile, it is shocking how many do. You can immediately find any profile using the pictures listed by performing a Google image search.

To perform a Google image search, follow the steps listed below:

Go to Google Images
Upload an image, drag it into the search bar, or post the image address.
A list of relevant results will pop up.

If the individual has profiles using the images you search, they will appear in the reverse image search. Most are clever enough to avoid attaching a phone number to a hidden profile, though many overlook how easy it is to find a unique picture online.

5. Search Their Common Aliases and Usernames

If you know their previously used personas or digital aliases, you can use them to uncover incognito accounts. Think of any previous accounts they had and what usernames they chose, and start searching around for them. Humans are creatures of habit, and most people will stick to a username they like.

Run a list of possible usernames through social media and search engines. If the trail gets cold, use CheckPeople to see if any usernames connect to the individual. If you still pull nothing, it may be time to expand our search to the person’s most trusted friends and family.

6. Check Mutual Friends and Close Associates

It pays to think outside the box to find a hidden account. Imagine who the person would feel comfortable sharing a secret account with. If you can find that person’s social media account, it is more than likely that they will have the hidden account as a friend on the platform.

If you are concerned about a partner stepping out or a child talking with a suspicious individual online, try to find people who you suspect of being involved with them. Looking through their friend’s list allows you to find the account without hiring an investigator.

How to Find People Online and Protect Your Privacy

Nearly a quarter century into the new millennium, discovering personal information about people has never been simpler. With nothing more than a name and a few free minutes, you can track down a person’s entire rap sheet and education. Because of this, it is very easy for people to get their personal or financial details leaked to less-than-stellar strangers.

If you want to protect yourself online, you will need to ensure that you keep your private life off of social media. You’ll also want to keep your cell number disconnected from the internet and avoid giving out your email address or other contact information to sketchy websites. You can’t keep everything hidden, but you can still maintain privacy with caution.

The Last Word on Hidden Profiles

No one feels good when they have to snoop around, but sometimes, we have to make sacrifices for the safety of our loved ones. You can uncover any undercover profiles in minutes by utilizing social media, search engines, CheckPeople, and mutual friends. If you still have no luck, you can move on to more financially demanding options.An excellent tip to help make these methods work for you is to use the information gathered from CheckPeople and reverse image searches to narrow future searches. Say you find a phone number connected to the search results; you can then use it on different social media platforms to see if it is connected to an unknown account.