Running an email search attempts to find out who is behind emails we receive. The average person in 2019 could expect to receive about 96 emails per day. While most were legitimate, nearly 20% were spam emails, ranging from innocuous marketing blasts to malicious attempts at phishing and other scams.
For most people, an email address is our digital passport on the internet. We use it to log in to websites, social media apps, online shopping accounts and everything in between. While convenient, it also means our email addresses are shared with countless individuals and businesses—and sometimes they fall into the wrong hands. With a reverse email search, you may be better able to discover who's behind some of the questionable emails you receive.
An email search tool is like a powerful search engine, only better. Plugging an email address into Google, for instance, will only scour the web for instances where the address appears. If the search returns any results, they're unlikely to be very helpful.
On the other hand, a PeopleLooker reverse email search is able to comb through billions of public records to attempt to connect the email address to the person behind it. An email search may reveal not only the sender's identity, but also their social media profiles, phone number and physical address.
If a PeopleLooker reverse email matches an email address to a person, you may also be able to find other useful information about the sender, such as:
Your search is 100% private. Your search subject will never know you looked up their email address.
Knowing who's behind an email address could help you avoid email scams and save you a lot of grief. It can also be useful in other scenarios.
Learn who's who in confusing group emails. If you're on a big email chain for something like a bachelorette party or family reunion, it can be hard to keep track of everyone. An email search may help remind you who's on the email chain, or help identify new people.
Learn more about online buyers and sellers. The internet is a great way to purchase goods from individuals, but it's also rife with fraud. A reverse email search may reveal information about a buyer or seller which could help make you feel more comfortable carrying out a transaction.
Find an old classmate when you only have their school email address. If you haven't connected with someone since college, all you may have is their (now inactive) .edu address. Plug that into a reverse email search and you may find their most current contact information.
Research an online dating match. It's not unusual for matches to move to email communication once they've gotten to "know" each other. A search on your match's email address may reveal more information about the person, which may help you decide whether it's a relationship you want to pursue.
Email scams are commonplace, as more people conduct their business online. For example, hotel reservations, ecommerce purchases and other financial transactions are often conducted or confirmed via email. Scammers may be able to create email addresses similar to the ones you have in your contacts and try to sell you items or ask for personal information. You may suspect these accounts aren't legitimate, but an email search may help confirm your suspicions. Even opening these emails can be dangerous: phishing scams aim to extract sensitive information from its target.
In fact, phishing attempts have reportedly risen 65% in the past year, and 76% of businesses have reported being the victim of a phishing attack in the past year. These statistics can be worrisome, especially if those businesses store clients’ personal identifiable information.
Number of business spam emails received per user/day
(Reflect only spam emails that were delivered to the mailbox after bypassing all spam/security filters)
2015 - 2019
Source: radicati.com
How can you better spot a phishing or email scam?
Be wary of unfamiliar email addresses and do not open emails from unknown senders.
Do not open email attachments or links contained in emails from unknown senders.
Install a firewall and antivirus software on your computer.
If it sounds too good to be true—for example, you receive an email claiming that you have won a “free” good or service—it almost always is.
Recovering from a scam can be unpleasant and messy business. Being vigilant and proactive could help you avoid becoming a victim in the first place.