About John L. White Expertise I can explain telecommunications concepts and terms and offer practical suggestions for deployment of systems. I have over fourteen years experience in designing voice and data networks for corporate customers.
Experience My company, Salient Networks, is based in San Diego, CA. We provide consultation, project design, and implementation of complex voice and data networks. We are a preferred solutions vendor for Avaya Communication, formerly the enterprise networking division of Lucent Technologies.
Expert: John L. White Date: 8/2/2001 Subject: Directory Assistance
Question This may not be up your alley, but here goes. I received an e-mail telling me to call an 888 number and verify some personal information. Before I make the call I'd like to verify some information of my own. Is there a way to find out who owns the number? I already called directory assistance for regular and toll free numbers and they couldn't help. But I think I saw a site once where you could enter a phone number and find out whose number it is. The problem is I can't remember the site. Do you have any ideas on this matter?
Thank you in advance,
DJ
Answer Don't apologize, that's a really good question. But I think we're out of luck. I used Google (the best search engine, by the way!) and sifted through many hits, but unable to find the one you're thinking of. Our local library has a book "Toll Free Phone Book USA", but there are no reverse listings. I tried Yellow Pages on the Web, which supposedly has the reverse lookup capability, but when I typed in a couple of authentic 800 numbers (our company and its suppliers) the Website told me there were no matches! So apparently the Web phone directories get their listing from published phone books, and the 800 numbers are not always given there. One reason is that a company can establish an 800 number for a particular advertising campaign, and not want it to be published in any directory. (I know this because our company has used this ploy). Another example of a company that wants to hide its identity, seems to me. -John W.
