The Fine Art database lists over 550, 000 artists with over 5 million auction records.

FORBES: Magnifico

"Nobody has a real handle on the extent of the problem, " says Anna Kisluk, director of the Art Loss Register in New York, which maintains an international database of stolen art.

FORBES: Insurance: Hey, that's my picture on your wall

Patent examiners typically focus their prior art searches on the database of existing patents.

FORBES: The Problems With Software Patents (Part 1 of 3)