Getting calls or texts from an unknown cell phone number is tough for the best of us.
No matter who you are, getting a call from a number you don't know makes you feel vulnerable and quite scared.
Luckily, there's a simple way to find out exactly who owns any phone number which anyone can use.
The problem with cell phone numbers is that there is no public directory for them, unlike landlines.
This means that there is no central public place to find out who owns a mobile number - you somehow have to find out their details yourself.
This was for two reasons, the first being that since cells are generally seen as "private" lines, the government thought it might be a breach of privacy rights to compile a central database of every cell owners details.
This was a controversial decision, but one which lead to no official cell phone directory being produced.
The second reason is that since cell phone ownership details (their location and owners) are constantly changing, it would have made little sense for the government to produce a directory because they would have had to change it every week.
Unlike landlines, cell phones are constantly having their ownership details changed (how many people do you know with 2 or more phones), which makes compiling a record of all these transactions nearly impossible.
Luckily, there are several online companies which have taken on this challenge in a very clever way, and it's paying off big time for them.
Companies such as Intelius and Reverse Phone Detective have become extremely popular in recent years because they provide some of the most reliable and comprehensive details for anyone, based just on their cell phone number.
These sites are known as reverse cell phone lookup sites and work by storing a huge database of public records which are from the likes of the government and ad agencies.
These sites basically purchase public records, which are created when you fill out various forms and information, and then put them into a huge database.
They are created when you tick the "share my information with other companies" box on forms for the likes of loan application, etc...
and contain your name address and cell phone details.
These reverse phone companies take these records and then put them into a central database which you can search with the mobile phone number.
No matter who you are, getting a call from a number you don't know makes you feel vulnerable and quite scared.
Luckily, there's a simple way to find out exactly who owns any phone number which anyone can use.
The problem with cell phone numbers is that there is no public directory for them, unlike landlines.
This means that there is no central public place to find out who owns a mobile number - you somehow have to find out their details yourself.
This was for two reasons, the first being that since cells are generally seen as "private" lines, the government thought it might be a breach of privacy rights to compile a central database of every cell owners details.
This was a controversial decision, but one which lead to no official cell phone directory being produced.
The second reason is that since cell phone ownership details (their location and owners) are constantly changing, it would have made little sense for the government to produce a directory because they would have had to change it every week.
Unlike landlines, cell phones are constantly having their ownership details changed (how many people do you know with 2 or more phones), which makes compiling a record of all these transactions nearly impossible.
Luckily, there are several online companies which have taken on this challenge in a very clever way, and it's paying off big time for them.
Companies such as Intelius and Reverse Phone Detective have become extremely popular in recent years because they provide some of the most reliable and comprehensive details for anyone, based just on their cell phone number.
These sites are known as reverse cell phone lookup sites and work by storing a huge database of public records which are from the likes of the government and ad agencies.
These sites basically purchase public records, which are created when you fill out various forms and information, and then put them into a huge database.
They are created when you tick the "share my information with other companies" box on forms for the likes of loan application, etc...
and contain your name address and cell phone details.
These reverse phone companies take these records and then put them into a central database which you can search with the mobile phone number.