IRE's Jaimi Dowdell Shares Strategy for Thorough Online Investigative Research
IRE's training director, Jaimi Dowdell, shares her approach to online investigative research, emphasizing strategy and thoroughness. She starts by using multiple search engines for backgrounding people and businesses.
Dowdell begins by searching Google and at least one other engine. For individuals, she delves into online databases like Whitepages and social media platforms. She also consults public records and local government databases for address searches. To verify addresses, she checks property records at local assessor's or recorder of deeds offices, often accessible through BRB Publications' portal.
For criminal records, she uses criminalsearches.com and state/national databases. To uncover deep Web information, she recommends specialized sites such as Facebook, Pipl, Whostalkin, Samepoint, and Icerocket. Dowdell also uses zabasearch for addresses and municipality pet-license databases for unpublished cell-phone numbers. For businesses, she starts with the company website and checks licenses, filings, and records.
Dowdell advises knowing what you're looking for and when to stop searching. She maintains a healthy skepticism towards online information, cautioning that sites like zoominfo.com can be outdated.
Dowdell's investigative approach involves using multiple search engines, online databases, and specialized sites for backgrounding people and businesses. She emphasizes strategy, thoroughness, and skepticism in online research.
