# Public Person Finder (`tri_angle/public-person-finder`) Actor Research any public figure instantly. Enter a name and get a fully cited intelligence report aggregating Wikipedia, sanctions lists, social media, news archives, and business registries. - **URL**: https://apify.com/tri\_angle/public-person-finder.md - **Developed by:** [Tri⟁angle](https://apify.com/tri_angle) (Apify) - **Categories:** Agents - **Stats:** 4 total users, 0 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 1 bookmarks - **User rating**: No ratings yet ## Pricing Pay per usage This Actor is paid per platform usage. The Actor is free to use, and you only pay for the Apify platform usage, which gets cheaper the higher subscription plan you have. Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-usage ## What's an Apify Actor? Actors are a software tools running on the Apify platform, for all kinds of web data extraction and automation use cases. In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours, and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store. In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server. Actors are written with capital "A". ## How to integrate an Actor? If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects. You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready. The best way to integrate Actors is as follows. In JavaScript/TypeScript projects, use official [JavaScript/TypeScript client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js.md): ```bash npm install apify-client ``` In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python.md): ```bash pip install apify-client ``` In shell scripts, use [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): ````bash # MacOS / Linux curl -fsSL https://apify.com/install-cli.sh | bash # Windows irm https://apify.com/install-cli.ps1 | iex ```bash In AI frameworks, you might use the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp.md). If your project is in a different language, use the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md). For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below. For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt). # README ## πŸ” Public Person Finder Research any public figure instantly. Enter a name, and Public Person Finder automatically searches Wikipedia, news archives, social media, government registries, and sanctions databases - then compiles everything into a single, fully cited intelligence report. No manual source-hopping. No copy-pasting. One Actor, eight data sources, one clean result. --- ### 🧠 What it does You give it a name. Optionally, you tell it what angle matters most - "business interests", "recent legal issues", "political career". Then it searches across eight sources at once and writes a structured report where every fact links back to its source. The report includes: - 🧬 **Biography and identity** - who the person is, birth details, known aliases, Wikidata cross-reference - πŸ“± **Social media presence** - profiles found across 13 platforms (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, GitHub, Discord, and more) - 🚨 **Sanctions and PEP screening** - automated check against the OpenSanctions database, covering politically exposed persons (PEPs) and global watchlists - πŸ“° **News coverage** - recent mentions scanned from BBC, The Guardian, The New York Times, AP, Le Monde, and Al Jazeera - 🌐 **Web intelligence** - Google search results and scraped content from top web pages - 🏒 **Business registry data** (optional) - UK Companies House directorships and SEC EDGAR filings for US-registered companies --- ### πŸ“‘ Data sources covered | Source | What it finds | Included by default | |---|---|---| | Wikipedia | Biography, identity facts, Wikidata ID | βœ… Yes | | OpenSanctions | Sanctions lists, PEP status, watchlists | βœ… Yes | | Social Media Finder | Profiles on 13 social platforms | βœ… Yes | | Google Search | Top search results and "People also ask" | βœ… Yes | | RAG Web Browser | Full page content from top websites | βœ… Yes | | News RSS | Articles from 6 major international news outlets | βœ… Yes | | UK Companies House | UK company directorships | βš™οΈ Opt-in | | SEC EDGAR | US SEC filings mentioning the person | βš™οΈ Opt-in | --- ### πŸ’Ό Use cases **πŸ—žοΈ Journalism and background research** - quickly build a source-cited dossier on a person you are writing about, with links to every claim. **πŸ”Ž Due diligence and compliance** - screen business partners, executives, or investors against sanctions lists and open registries before signing. **πŸ‘₯ HR and hiring** - verify a candidate's public professional presence and check for red flags in news or watchlists. **πŸ“Š Business intelligence** - understand who you are dealing with before a negotiation, investment, or partnership. **βš–οΈ Legal research** - gather publicly available information on a person of interest with full source provenance. --- ### πŸš€ How to use it 1. Open the Actor in Apify Console and click **Try for free**. 2. Enter the **person's name** (real name, pseudonym, or social handle). 3. Optionally add a **research focus** - for example "financial background" or "political activities" - to steer which sources the Actor prioritizes. 4. Paste your **Anthropic API key** (required - the Actor uses Claude to plan queries and write the report). 5. Click **Start** and wait around 2 minutes. Your report will appear in the dataset. --- ### πŸ“¦ What you get Each run produces one result with two views of the same information: πŸ“ **Report** - a long-form intelligence brief (typically 800-1,500 words) written in plain English, organized into sections, with every claim followed by an inline citation like `[wikipedia-1]`. πŸ’¬ **Summary** - a 3-5 sentence executive summary hitting the most important findings, also cited. πŸ—‚οΈ **Structured data** - machine-readable arrays for identity details, social profiles, professional records, sanctions hits, news articles, and web results. Useful if you want to process the output programmatically. πŸ”— **Citations** - a full list of every source used, with URLs and retrieval timestamps, so you can verify any finding independently. #### Example output structure ```json { "summary": "...", "report": "...", "identity": [{ "fullName": "...", "born": "...", "nationality": "..." }], "social": [{ "platform": "linkedin", "url": "..." }], "sanctions": { "hits": [], "cleared": true }, "news": [{ "title": "...", "url": "...", "published": "..." }], "citations": [{ "id": "wikipedia-1", "url": "...", "source": "Wikipedia" }] } ```` *** ### βš™οΈ Input options | Field | Required | Description | |---|---|---| | Person name | βœ… Yes | The name to research. Real name, pseudonym, or social handle. | | Research focus | No | Free-text guidance on what angle to prioritize (e.g. "business ventures", "legal cases"). | | Anthropic API key | βœ… Yes | Your Anthropic API key - used to plan the research and write the final report. | | AI model | No | Claude model to use. Defaults to claude-sonnet-4-6. Only change if you have a specific reason. | | Enabled data sources | No | Choose which sources to run. Leave empty to use all defaults. | | Proxy configuration | No | Defaults to Apify Proxy. Change only if you have specific routing requirements. | *** ### πŸ’° Cost and requirements **πŸ€– Anthropic API key** - you need your own key from [console.anthropic.com](https://console.anthropic.com). The Actor makes two API calls per run (one to plan the research, one to write the report). At default settings using Claude Sonnet, a typical run costs a few cents in Anthropic API usage. **πŸ–₯️ Apify compute** - standard Actor usage applies. Most runs finish in around 2 minutes. **πŸ“¦ Apify sub-Actors** - Google Search Scraper, Social Media Finder, and RAG Web Browser are Apify Actors that run under your account and will be billed separately based on their own pricing. **πŸ†“ Free sources** - Wikipedia, OpenSanctions, RSS news feeds, UK Companies House, and SEC EDGAR are all free with no usage limits. *** ### ⚠️ Limitations - **Public figures only** - the Actor searches public sources. It will not find information that is not publicly available online. - **English-language sources dominant** - Wikipedia, RSS news feeds, and Google Search return primarily English results. Coverage of figures prominent only in non-English sources may be limited. - **No real-time data** - news articles depend on RSS feed freshness (typically updated every few hours). For breaking news, results may lag. - **Name disambiguation** - common names may surface results for multiple people. Use the research focus field to narrow the scope (e.g. "Elon Musk technology entrepreneur"). - **Not a legal background check** - this Actor aggregates publicly available information only. It is not a substitute for a formal background check service. *** ### πŸ”— Related Actors - [Social Media Finder](https://apify.com/tri_angle/social-media-finder) - standalone social profile lookup used by this Actor - [Google Search Scraper](https://apify.com/apify/google-search-scraper) - full Google SERP scraper - [RAG Web Browser](https://apify.com/apify/rag-web-browser) - reads web pages as clean markdown for AI use # Actor input Schema ## `name` (type: `string`): The full name, social handle, or pseudonym of the person you want to research. Use the most widely known version of their name for best results - e.g. Elon Musk, Barack Obama, @cristiano. ## `prompt` (type: `string`): What do you want to know about this person? Add a focus here to get a more targeted report. For example: "business interests and investments", "political career and controversies", or "recent news". Leave empty for a general overview. ## `anthropicApiKey` (type: `string`): Your API key from Anthropic. The Actor uses Claude AI to plan the research and write the final report, so this key is required. Get yours at console.anthropic.com under API Keys. Each run makes two short AI calls - typical cost is a few cents. ## `anthropicModel` (type: `string`): The Claude AI model used to write the report. The default (claude-sonnet-4-6) is a good balance of quality and cost. Leave this as-is unless you have a specific reason to change it. ## `enabledPlugins` (type: `array`): Choose which sources to search. Leave empty to use all standard sources. UK Companies House and SEC EDGAR are off by default - turn them on if the person has UK or US business connections. ## `rssFeeds` (type: `array`): Replaces the default news feeds entirely. Any RSS or Atom feed URLs you enter here will be used instead of the built-in list - the defaults (BBC, The Guardian, NYT, AP, Le Monde, Al Jazeera) will not run. To keep the standard outlets and add your own, you must include their feed URLs here as well. Leave empty to use the default set. Example feed URLs: https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/rss.xml, https://rss.nytimes.com/services/xml/rss/nyt/HomePage.xml ## `proxyConfig` (type: `object`): Proxy used when fetching from Wikipedia, OpenSanctions, registries, and news feeds. Apify Actors called as sub-Actors (e.g. Google Search) use their own proxy settings. The default (Apify Proxy) works for most users - only change this if you have a specific reason. ## Actor input object example ```json { "anthropicModel": "claude-sonnet-4-6", "proxyConfig": { "useApifyProxy": true, "apifyProxyGroups": [] } } ``` # API You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup. ## JavaScript example ```javascript import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client'; // Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token // Replace the '' with your token const client = new ApifyClient({ token: '', }); // Prepare Actor input const input = { "proxyConfig": { "useApifyProxy": true, "apifyProxyGroups": [] } }; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("tri_angle/public-person-finder").call(input); // Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any) console.log('Results from dataset'); console.log(`πŸ’Ύ Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`); const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems(); items.forEach((item) => { console.dir(item); }); // πŸ“š Want to learn more πŸ“–? Go to β†’ https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs ``` ## Python example ```python from apify_client import ApifyClient # Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token # Replace '' with your token. client = ApifyClient("") # Prepare the Actor input run_input = { "proxyConfig": { "useApifyProxy": True, "apifyProxyGroups": [], } } # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("tri_angle/public-person-finder").call(run_input=run_input) # Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any) print("πŸ’Ύ Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"]) for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items(): print(item) # πŸ“š Want to learn more πŸ“–? Go to β†’ https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start ``` ## CLI example ```bash echo '{ "proxyConfig": { "useApifyProxy": true, "apifyProxyGroups": [] } }' | apify call tri_angle/public-person-finder --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=tri_angle/public-person-finder", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "Public Person Finder", "description": "Research any public figure instantly. Enter a name and get a fully cited intelligence report aggregating Wikipedia, sanctions lists, social media, news archives, and business registries.", "version": "0.0", "x-build-id": "WAZCSs2ClED1hJkdC" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/tri_angle~public-person-finder/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-tri_angle-public-person-finder", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } }, "/acts/tri_angle~public-person-finder/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-tri_angle-public-person-finder", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK", "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema" } } } } } } }, "/acts/tri_angle~public-person-finder/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-tri_angle-public-person-finder", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } } }, "components": { "schemas": { "inputSchema": { "type": "object", "required": [ "name", "anthropicApiKey" ], "properties": { "name": { "title": "Person to research", "type": "string", "description": "The full name, social handle, or pseudonym of the person you want to research. Use the most widely known version of their name for best results - e.g. Elon Musk, Barack Obama, @cristiano." }, "prompt": { "title": "Research focus (optional)", "type": "string", "description": "What do you want to know about this person? Add a focus here to get a more targeted report. For example: \"business interests and investments\", \"political career and controversies\", or \"recent news\". Leave empty for a general overview." }, "anthropicApiKey": { "title": "Anthropic API key", "type": "string", "description": "Your API key from Anthropic. The Actor uses Claude AI to plan the research and write the final report, so this key is required. Get yours at console.anthropic.com under API Keys. Each run makes two short AI calls - typical cost is a few cents." }, "anthropicModel": { "title": "AI model (advanced)", "type": "string", "description": "The Claude AI model used to write the report. The default (claude-sonnet-4-6) is a good balance of quality and cost. Leave this as-is unless you have a specific reason to change it.", "default": "claude-sonnet-4-6" }, "enabledPlugins": { "title": "Data sources", "uniqueItems": true, "type": "array", "description": "Choose which sources to search. Leave empty to use all standard sources. UK Companies House and SEC EDGAR are off by default - turn them on if the person has UK or US business connections.", "items": { "type": "string", "enum": [ "wikipedia", "opensanctions", "social-media-finder", "google-search", "rag-web-browser", "rss", "registry-uk", "registry-sec-edgar" ], "enumTitles": [ "Wikipedia - biography, background, and identity (free)", "OpenSanctions - global sanctions lists and political watchlists (free)", "Social Media Finder - profiles on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, GitHub, and 7 more (Apify Actor)", "Google Search - top search results for this person (Apify Actor, paid)", "Web browser - reads the full content of top websites (Apify Actor, free)", "News feeds - recent articles from BBC, The Guardian, NYT, AP, Le Monde, and Al Jazeera (free)", "UK Companies House - British company directorships (free, opt-in)", "SEC EDGAR - US public company filings naming this person (free, opt-in)" ] } }, "rssFeeds": { "title": "Custom RSS feeds (advanced)", "type": "array", "description": "Replaces the default news feeds entirely. Any RSS or Atom feed URLs you enter here will be used instead of the built-in list - the defaults (BBC, The Guardian, NYT, AP, Le Monde, Al Jazeera) will not run. To keep the standard outlets and add your own, you must include their feed URLs here as well. Leave empty to use the default set. Example feed URLs: https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/rss.xml, https://rss.nytimes.com/services/xml/rss/nyt/HomePage.xml", "items": { "type": "string" } }, "proxyConfig": { "title": "Proxy settings", "type": "object", "description": "Proxy used when fetching from Wikipedia, OpenSanctions, registries, and news feeds. Apify Actors called as sub-Actors (e.g. Google Search) use their own proxy settings. The default (Apify Proxy) works for most users - only change this if you have a specific reason.", "default": { "useApifyProxy": true, "apifyProxyGroups": [] } } } }, "runsResponseSchema": { "type": "object", "properties": { "data": { "type": "object", "properties": { "id": { "type": "string" }, "actId": { "type": "string" }, "userId": { "type": "string" }, "startedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "finishedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "status": { "type": "string", "example": "READY" }, "meta": { "type": "object", "properties": { "origin": { "type": "string", "example": "API" }, "userAgent": { "type": "string" } } }, "stats": { "type": "object", "properties": { "inputBodyLen": { "type": "integer", "example": 2000 }, "rebootCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "restartCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "resurrectCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "computeUnits": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "options": { "type": "object", "properties": { "build": { "type": "string", "example": "latest" }, "timeoutSecs": { "type": "integer", "example": 300 }, "memoryMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 1024 }, "diskMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 2048 } } }, "buildId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultKeyValueStoreId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultDatasetId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultRequestQueueId": { "type": "string" }, "buildNumber": { "type": "string", "example": "1.0.0" }, "containerUrl": { "type": "string" }, "usage": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 1 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "usageTotalUsd": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "usageUsd": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } } } } } } } } } ```