Username often acts as a brand/identity for Social Media users. And is one of the most common data points to start off with during an Investigation. Now of course you can always run to username enumeration tools such as WhatsMyName by Micah Hoffman(WebBreacher) or make use of Google Dorking. To assist in tracking the username across platforms across the web. But sometimes you can get valuable clues from analysis of the content that makes up the username by itself.
Usernames often serve to provide identifying characteristics of the person behind the username such as Geographical Location, Ethnicity, Age, and Gender. It can also show what the user interests are and their group affiliation alignment. This can allow you to filter out all of the noise and track the user to more niche/alternative platforms outside of the common Facebook, Twitter(X), Instagram, & google search. To where the user can be found on the web, based on clues/background the username gives.
Since we are working with only one data point; a username. Please be aware that during an investigation there is a chance of Bias which can lead you into making false assumptions. If you don’t look into additional information that either approves or disapproves your assumptions. If you don’t it can slow down your progress and limit the accuracy of your investigation.
Now enough talking, let’s get into some identifying characteristics that can be picked out.
Content types/characteristics:
Personal Characteristics
Usernames can identify the personal characteristics of the person behind the username such as hobbies/likes, Ethnicity, Age, Group Affiliations, Occupation & Gender. Let’s start with some examples:
With the username: GamerGal1982
We have 3 data points to work with “Gamer”, “Gal”, and “1982”. These are clues that this person likes to play Video Games, is a woman, and was born in the 1980s.
vietbuffalo16:
viet: Vietnamese | buffalo: Vietnam’s national animal is a water buffalo. We can conclude that this person is of Vietnamese descent.
LibertarianChef123:
Libertarian: political philosophy | Chef: occupation(past or present) We can conclude that this person aligns with Libertarian values and groups. and is or was a Chef.
Locational Characteristics:
Usernames can identify the locational characteristics of the person behind the username such as their Ethnicity, hometown or current city, & regional specific terms/groups. Let start with some examples:
BroncosFan77:
Broncos is a NFL Football team based out of Indiana, United States. We can conclude that this person is from the Indiana. And is a big enough fan to have it as their username.
_SantiagoPianist_:
Santiago is Chile’s capital and largest city. We can can conclude that this person has origins in Santiago, Chile and is likely Chilean. Additionally, we can further narrow this person down to theaters and opera houses alike in Santiago since they are a Pianist.
MrCandyfloss:
CandyFloss and CottonCandy are the same thing but the term CandyFloss is specific to British English and CottonCandy is specific to American English. So MrCandyFloss is likely from the UK.
Miscellaneous Characteristics:
There are some miscellaneous characteristics that can be found within usernames. Such as the Language the username is in and symbolic numbers such as 1776(Declaration of Independence; United States) or the number 88 which is often used by White supremacists/Neo-Nazis as a symbol of hate. But be mindful that numbers can also be just random or represent something entirely different than what your initial assumptions are. Such as a year of birth or a jersey number of a famous athlete. So further analysis would need to be conducted to determine if either or none is true; best not to jump to conclusions without evidence.
For some ending, practice here are some usernames. Comment below what information you can gather from them:
- Bronx_lion19
- RanaAzul44
- vietnamviet1975
- MissAnarchy
- ArsenalWookie
- Черный камень
- 서울호랑이
Disclaimer: I am not liable for any wrongful or illegal activity against any organization or person resulting from techniques described in this article. This article is for educational purposes only.
