Is it ever ethical to find out where someone works?
I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. A friend mentioned they’d looked up where an old schoolmate works now, just out of curiosity, and it made me uneasy. On one hand, LinkedIn and Google make this stuff feel normal. On the other, it feels a bit intrusive if there’s no real reason. Is it ever ethical to find out where someone works if they haven’t told you directly? Where do personal boundaries actually sit here?
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I get why that feels uncomfortable, and I’ve wrestled with it myself. A few years ago, I tried to track down a former colleague to return some equipment, and even then I felt awkward digging around online. There are loads of ways people do this now, and some are surprisingly easy, which is what makes the ethics tricky. I came across an article that lays out the common methods people use: 6 Ways to Find Out Where Someone Works What struck me wasn’t the “how”, but the why. If your motive is practical or benign—like verifying a business contact or reconnecting with consent—that feels very different from doing it out of nosiness or to gain leverage. In the UK especially, we’re meant to value privacy, even if information is technically public. I think just because you can find out where someone works doesn’t mean you should. A good rule I try to follow is: would I be comfortable if someone did the same to me without asking?