Start with the footer and "About" page

The fastest way to find a website's author is to scroll to the bottom of the page and look for an "About" link or a copyright notice with a name. Most legitimate websites put this information in the footer — the gray or dark area at the very bottom — because visitors expect to find it there. The copyright line often reads "© 2024 Company Name" or "© 2024 John Smith" and tells you who owns the site.

Click the "About" link if one exists. This page usually explains who created the site, what organization runs it, and sometimes why. For news sites, blogs, and business websites, the About page is where the author or publisher introduces themselves. If the site is run by a company, you will find the company name and sometimes the founder's name. If it is a personal blog, you will usually find the author's name and a short biography.

If there is no footer or About page, look for a "Contact" link. Contact pages often list the site owner's name, email address, or the organization responsible for the content. Some sites hide this information deliberately, which is itself a warning sign about whether to trust what you read there.

Check the domain registration with WHOIS

WHOIS is a public database that records who registered a website's domain name — the part after "www." and before ".com" or ".org". When someone buys a domain, they provide their name, address, and contact information to a registrar, and that information is stored in WHOIS. You can search it for free to see who officially owns a domain.

Go to a WHOIS search tool like whois.com, whoisxml.com, or icann.org/whois. Type in the domain name (for example, "example.com") and search. The results will show the registrant name, organization, and sometimes an email address. This tells you who bought the domain, though it may not tell you who actually writes the content — a company might own the domain but hire someone else to run the site.

Many domain owners use privacy protection services that hide their real name and replace it with the privacy service's information. If you see "Privacy Service" or "Redacted for Privacy" in the WHOIS results, the owner chose to keep their identity hidden. This is legal but common among people who want anonymity, which may or may not be a reason to distrust the site.

Key Takeaways

  • The footer and About page are the first places to look for the author's name or the organization that runs the website.
  • A WHOIS search shows you who registered the domain name, though the registrant may not be the person who writes the content.
  • Contact pages often list the site owner's name or organization when other pages do not.
  • If a website hides its author or owner information, that is a sign to be cautious about trusting the content.
  • Some domain owners use privacy services to hide their identity in WHOIS results, which is legal but makes the author harder to find.

Look for bylines and author bios on individual articles

If you are reading a specific article or blog post, look for a byline — the author's name printed at the top or bottom of the piece. Many news sites, blogs, and educational websites put the author's name and a short biography near the article. The byline might say "By Sarah Chen" or "Written by James Rodriguez" and may include a link to the author's profile page or email address.

Click on the author's name if it is a link. This usually takes you to a page showing other articles by that author, their credentials, and sometimes their contact information. On professional sites like news outlets or academic blogs, the author bio will tell you their job title, education, or area of informed. This helps you understand whether the person writing about a topic has real knowledge of it.

Search for the site in search engines and business directories

Type the website's name or domain into Google along with the word "author" or "owner" — for example, "example.com author" or "example.com owner". Search results often turn up news articles, social media posts, or directory listings that mention who runs the site. This is especially useful for smaller sites that may not have a clear About page.

Check business directories like Better Business Bureau (bbb.org), LinkedIn, or industry-specific directories. If the website belongs to a business, it may be listed in these directories with the owner's name, company address, and phone number. LinkedIn is particularly useful for finding the people behind a company — search the company name and you will see employees and sometimes the founder or CEO listed.

Look at the site's metadata and source code

Every website contains hidden information in its code that browsers do not display on the page itself. This information, called metadata, sometimes includes the author's name or the content management system used to build the site. To view it, right-click anywhere on the page and select "View Page Source" or "Inspect" (the exact wording depends on your browser). A window will open showing the website's underlying code.

Look for lines that say "author" or "creator" in the code. You may see something like <meta name="author" content="John Smith">, which tells you the author's name. Not all sites include this information, and many that do leave it blank or outdated. This method works best on older websites or sites built with certain tools, but it is worth trying if other methods have not worked.

Check social media and press releases

Search for the website's name on social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Instagram. Many websites have official accounts that list who runs them in the profile description or pinned posts. A Twitter account for a news site might say "Official account of Example News, founded by Jane Doe" or link to the founder's personal account.

Search for press releases about the website using Google News or a press release database. If the site is run by a company or organization, they may have issued press releases when it launched or when major changes happened. Press releases typically include the founder's or CEO's name and sometimes a quote from them. This is especially useful for finding information about larger websites or news outlets.

Understand when a site deliberately hides its author

Some websites intentionally make it hard to find who runs them. This might mean no About page, no footer information, a WHOIS privacy service, and no bylines on articles. While this is not always a sign of fraud, it is a reason to be cautious. Legitimate news outlets, educational sites, and businesses want you to know who they are because it builds trust.

If you cannot find author information after checking the footer, About page, WHOIS, and bylines, ask yourself whether you should trust the content. Sites that hide their identity are often trying to avoid accountability for what they publish. Before sharing information from such a site or making decisions based on it, try to find the same information from a source that is transparent about who wrote it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What if the website says it is run by a company but I cannot find the company anywhere?

Search the company name in Google and on the Better Business Bureau website. If the company does not appear in any search results or business directories, it may not be a real organization. Scam websites sometimes use made-up company names. Check the WHOIS registration to see if the domain owner's name matches the company name listed on the site.

Can I trust a website that uses a privacy service to hide the domain owner?

Privacy services are legal and used by legitimate websites, but they also make it harder to verify who is behind a site. A privacy service alone does not mean the site is untrustworthy, but combined with other red flags — like no About page, no bylines, or suspicious claims — it is a reason to be cautious. Look for other ways to verify the site's credibility, like checking whether established news outlets or organizations link to it.

What does it mean if an article has no byline?

Some sites publish articles without listing an author, which is common for news aggregators, wire services, or sites that republish content from other sources. However, reputable news organizations almost always include a byline. If a site publishes original reporting without bylines, that is a sign to question whether the information is reliable or whether the site is trying to avoid accountability.

Is the person listed in WHOIS always the person who writes the content?

No. The WHOIS registrant is whoever bought the domain name, which might be the author, the author's company, a web hosting service, or someone hired to manage the domain. To find the actual author or content creator, you need to check the About page, bylines, and footer information on the site itself.