How to Search for Private People in Facebook

Finding private people's information on Facebook is as simple as sending a quick message.

The easiest way to search for the profile of a particularly private Facebook user is to friend the person. But what if you want to view the information of someone you don't know, perhaps a friend of a friend or an ex's new squeeze? The simplest way to do so is to simply send that person a message. When he responds (even if the response is "Who are you?") you have access to his profile.

Instructions

1. Log in to your Facebook account and go to the "Profile" page of the person you wish to view.

2. Click the link under the photo saying "Send [Person's Name] a message." Even if the person has hidden all of her information, this option will still be available.

3. Type in a message. The content doesn't matter; you're just looking to get a response. You can say who you are up front or, if you're doing something more clandestine, you can ask the person a question like "Hey, are you the Rachel I met on the subway the other day?"

4. Wait for a response. It doesn't matter what the response is, all that matters is that you get one.

5. Click on the person's name in the response window. You will now have temporary access to view his profile for 30 days.

Tips & Warnings

• There is a chance that the person has disabled her name from appearing in Facebook searches at all, in which case you're out of luck. Thankfully, very few users do this. People who don't wish to be a part of social networking generally don't have a Facebook page at all.

• Directly hacking into a private Facebook profile page is illegal and not worth the jail time if you get caught, no matter how desperately you want to see the profile. The above method is perfectly legal though, since by responding to your message the person is consenting to let you view his profile (per Facebook rules).

References

• Make Use Of: How to View Private Facebook Profiles