I need to find a free reverse phone directory, where do I go?

Very first step is to go through the 411 online phone directory to see if the number is in it, if not try the white pages.

How accurate are those free directories?

These free directories use generic databases of land line telephone numbers. We cannot expect much from a free “charity” service like that. So if you’re looking up a mobile telephone number or a de-listed number you will most certainly not find it there. There are better alternatives which are described below.

How come regular land line telephone numbers are so easy to come by?

Landlines are provided by the main telephone registrar who lets pretty much anyone gain access to their database. Lately its becoming stricter, but in broader terms, it is still pretty much the same deal.

Why are cell phone and un-listed numbers so hard to trace?

The simple truth is that de-listed numbers and cellular numbers are not assembled by any telephone entity into a free searchable database. There are certain reasons which prevent the organizations from sharing this information publicly and below we will explore several facts which contribute to this information scarcity.

Charges

If someone calls you on a landline and starts pitching you a product you might be mad because the person on the other line is taking up your time, but if that someone calls you on a cell phone and does the same you might end up paying for the phone call on a per minute basis. Naturally you’d want to find the source from which the person got your phone number and if it turns out to be your phone carrier then you might try and make them pay for the talk time that occurred because of their negligence, which they definitely don’t want you to do.

Unsolicited SMS messages

These are a growing reality and an annoyance in China and Vietnam. Since the SMS spam regulations are much stricter in North-America we don’t see much of it here. Nonetheless, the phone carriers don’t take chances and try to keep your cell numbers out of the public view.

Are there any good places that allow you to perform reverse cellular look ups online?

There are a number of different places that offer these services. Their web-sites should specifically indicate that they have access to the information that you need and have a preview search function that will tell you if the given phone number can be located in the database.

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