| Symbols | Meanings |
|---|---|
| ☠ | high priority |
| 🎫 | requires driver’s license (cross out your ID #!) |
| 📞 | must pick up a (gasp!) phone |
| 📠 | must go back in time and find a fax machine |
| 📫 | must use snail mail |
| 💰 | site charges money for access or removal (whaaaat?) |
Please send corrections or updates to yael@yaelwrites.com. I will add opt-outs where users can verify that the data broker has their information before providing it, and that are not limited to GDPR/CCPA/etc.
Disclaimers: Some of these opt-outs take a long time to go through. Sometimes, information is pulled from other sources and you’ll need to opt out multiple times for the same site. Data brokers come and go (and are bought out by others), and they also often change their opt-out pages. I try to update this ~every six months, but it’s not always current. Finally, even opting out of these sites doesn’t mean that your address is secure. In many states, real estate data and voter registration information is public (or easy to obtain). And, of course, location data can be found by physical means (e.g., following you home) and through other people who know it (i.e., social engineering). That said, removing your home address from data broker sites can significantly lower your attack surface and make it harder for people to find it. 💕
If you've been doxed, you can remove your contact info from Google Search and Bing.
https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/9554939?hl=en https://www.microsoft.com/en-ca/concern/bing
It is hard to find your own info for free, but you can opt out here:
https://isapps.acxiom.com/optout/optout.aspx#section8 (U.S.)
https://isapps.acxiom.com/optout/optout.aspx#section7 (non-U.S.)
https://isapps.acxiom.com/optout/optout.aspx (info)
If you don’t have an email address, call (877) 774-2094 and follow the prompts.
Search for your information here: https://www.advancedbackgroundchecks.com/. (Remember that you can leave your city and state and your age blank.) If your information shows up, remove your data here: https://www.advancedbackgroundchecks.com/removal
To find your information, you must sign up for a free trial here:
https://www.archives.com/search/ancestor/checkout(and then cancel)
Opt out here: http://www.archives.com/Optout
Find your information and opt out here: https://www.backgroundalert.com/optout/.
Find your information and opt out here:
https://www.beenverified.com/app/optout/search
Opt out of property search here:
https://www.beenverified.com/app/optout/address-search
Look for your contact info here: https://checkpeople.com/. If it shows up, opt out here: https://checkpeople.com/do-not-sell-info. You will need to fill out a form and captcha, select the record for removal, fill out your name and email, and solve another captcha. You will receive an email which will require you to confirm your opt-out request.
Find your information and opt out here:
https://www.checkthem.com/optout/. You will receive a link via email you’ll need to click on to complete the process.
Cancel your free or paid membership following the instructions here:
https://help.classmates.com/hc/en-us/articles/115002224171-How-can-I-cancel-my-membership-
Find your information here: [https://clustrmaps.com/] (https://clustrmaps.com). To remove it, go here: https://clustrmaps.com/bl/opt-out. It will ask you for a mailing address, but doesn’t seem to verify it. It will then ask you to check off anything associated with your account that you want removed.
Find your information here: https://www.cyberbackgroundchecks.com/. If it’s listed, remove it here. https://www.cyberbackgroundchecks.com/removal. You will need to confirm by clicking a link sent via email.
Search for yourself and remove your information here:
https://www.familytreenow.com/optout
Look for and remove your information here: https://www.fastpeoplesearch.com/removal. You may need to solve a captcha.
Search for your information at ]https://www.freepeopledirectory.com](https://www.freepeopledirectory.com). If you find it, you can opt out on Spokeo at https://www.spokeo.com/privacy/control.
Look for your home address here: https://homemetry.com/. If your name is listed alongside your address, click on the “information control” link. Opt out of applicable phone numbers and names. There's a limit per each opt out and each email you use to opt out. You will need to click the verification link they email you to finalize the opt out.
Find your information and out here: https://www.idtrue.com/optout/
Find your information here: https://www.infotracer.com/
You can opt out by filling out this form: https://www.infotracer.com/optout. You can also mail in this form: https://members.infotracer.com/tspec/shared/assets/data_opt_out_form.pdf or fax it to 1-617-933-9946.
Find and remove your information here:
https://www.instantcheckmate.com/opt-out/v2/submit/
Find your information here: https://www.intelius.com. Opt out here: https://www.intelius.com/optout. (Intelius owns Addresses.com, Addresssearch.com, Anywho, Classmates, DateCheck, InstantPeopleFinder, iSearch, LookUpAnyone, Peopleconnect.us, PeopleFinder, PeopleLookup, Phonesbook, Publicrecords, Spock, Zabasearch, and possibly US Search.)
Find your information here: https://www.mylife.com. Opt out using the following URL: https://www.mylife.com/ccpa/index.pubview. Although this is CCPA-focused, non-California folks have successfully removed their profiles. However, another option is to email your removal request to privacy@mylife.com with your name and a link to your profile. MyLife will try to get you to create an account with a copy of your driver’s license to submit a profile removal request, and we’ve received reports that emailing the info@mylife.com or removalrequests@mylife.com email addresses will require a phone call to (888) 704-1900. Previously, calling that number and pressing 2 allowed you to be removed from MyLife (and Wink.com) after providing your name, age, date of birth, email address, current mailing address, and a previous mailing address, but this no longer appears to be the case. (It also appears that you can sign up for a free membership to remove your reputation profile, though not your personal information such as your home address.)
Find your information here: https://nuwber.com/. Enter the URL of the profile page you found and your email address here: https://nuwber.com/removal/link.
Find your information here: https://www.peekyou.com/ , opt out here: https://www.peekyou.com/about/contact/optout. You will need the letters at the end of your profile’s URL in the "unique ID" field. Make sure to check "remove my entire listing." You can also remove your information from the sites that it says it has aggregated information from.
Look up your name here: http://www.peoplebyname.com/people. Or, you can fill in your name in the URL like this: http://www.peoplebyname.com/people/[Last_Name]/[First_Name]. Opt out for each record here: http://www.peoplebyname.com/remove.php
Find your information here: https://www.peoplefinders.com/ and opt out here:https://www.peoplefinders.com/opt-out (includes Advanced People Search and PublicRecordsNow)
Find your information and opt out here: https://www.peoplesearchnow.com/opt-out
Search for your information here: https://persopo.com/search. Cut and paste the text of it (which is hard to do because of the 1990s site format, but is required by the site) and email it along with your opt-out request tosupport@persopo.com. You can also mail your request to Persopo.com, Attention: Opt Out Dept., 848 N. Rainbow Blvd., Suite 20, Las Vegas, NV 89107. (Opt-out instructions are posted here: http://info.persopo.com/opt-out.html).
Go to https://pipl.com to find your data. Opt out from Pipl at https://pipl.com/personal-information-removal-request. Then, remove your information from any sites it’s aggregated from. You can also email support at [support@pipl.com] (mailto:support@pipl.com).
Look for your info here: https://www.privateeye.com/ Opt out here: https://www.privateeye.com/static/view/optout/. You can also skip the first part and head to the second. This site will also take you to PeopleFinders, so you can opt out of that, too.
Find your information here: [https://www.publicrecordsnow.com/]. Click “opt out” on this form: [https://www.publicrecordsnow.com/static/view/contact/], fill out the form, complete the captcha and send it in.
Find your information here: http://radaris.com. Click on "control information" and "remove information" by clicking on the X next to it or by removing specific listings. You can also privatize your account. You unfortunately need to register to remove information, and are limited to removing six items at a time. (I recommend removing items even if you privatize your account because these settings don’t always stick.) Details are here: http://radaris.com/page/how-to-remove
Unfortunately, you have to sign up with a credit card to search for your information at https://www.searchbug.com, but you can email support@searchbug.zohodesk.com to ask them to block the display of your personal information from being listed. Additional contact info is listed here: https://www.searchbug.com/contact-us.aspx.
FInd your information here: https://www.searchpeoplefree.com/, making sure to search by name, phone number, address and email address: Opt out here: https://www.searchpeoplefree.com/opt-out.
Find your information here: https://www.searchquarry.com/. If it’s listed, opt out here: https://www.searchquarry.com/opt-out/ You will need to click the verification link in your inbox to finalize the opt out.
Find your information here: https://www.smartbackgroundchecks.com/. Opt out here: https://www.smartbackgroundchecks.com/optout
Find your information here:http://www.spoke.com/. Find the “people site map” on the bottom, and it’ll take you here (with a different initial at the end, depending on your last name): https://www.spoke.com/dir/people/name/a. Click the links to search for your last name. Then do the same for your first name. You will get to a results page. Click each name listing, and suppress it by clicking the "Request Removal" link at the bottom of the page, entering the URL in the contact form it takes you to, and providing your email address. You can also email your removal request to feedback@readwritelabs.com. Unfortunately, Spoke’s opt-out page is not be working—its link from the FAQ page is dead.
Find your information here https://www.spokeo.com/search and remove your information by entering the URL of the profile you want removed and your email address here: https://www.spokeo.com/optout
Opt out here: https://www.truepeoplesearch.com/removal.
Find your information here: https://thatsthem.com/, if it shows up, try to opt out here: https://thatsthem.com/optout.
Find and remove your information at https://www.truthfinder.com/opt-out/v2/submit. Search for your name, click "remove this record," and fill out the information (your name and email address). You can also send your removal request in the mail to TruthFinder, attn: OptOut, 2534 State St., Suite 473, San Diego, CA 92101. If you find your information after you have opted out, contact Truthfinder at (800) 699-8081 or help@truthfinder.com. (More contact information here: https://www.truthfinder.com/about/#contact.)
Find and remove your information at https://www.usa-people-search.com/manage.
Find and remove your information here: https://www.ussearch.com/opt-out/submit/.
Look for your number and opt out here:https://www.usphonebook.com/opt-out/.
Find your information at https://verecor.com. To opt out, enter the profile URL (along with your name and email) at https://verecor.com/ng/control/privacy. You will need to fill out a captcha, and confirm the email link to finalize your request. If it doesn’t go through, you may need to email assist@verecor.com.
Go to VoterRecords.com, find your information, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the "record opt-out" link. This will lead to an opt-out form, which you’ll need to submit. You may receive a verification link you’ll need to click on to verify your opt-out request.
Find your information here: https://www.whitepages.com/, and then opt out here: https://www.whitepages.com/suppression_requests
You will need to provide a phone number and enter an opt-out code when you receive the phone call. Opt-out information is available here: https://support.whitepages.com/hc/en-us/articles/115010106908-How-do-I-edit-or-remove-a-personal-listing-. You can also send a request here https://support.whitepages.com/hc/en-us/requests/new. (Including multiple options because these sites have a tendency to disappear.) Sometimes, information is removed from White Pages but not White Pages Premium, so make sure to double-check for your listing. Also, White Pages also owns 411.com, so check for your information there. The opt-out is the same.
(formerly Cubib?) Look up your information at https://www.xlek.com/. Opt out at https://www.xlek.com/optout.php. You’ll need to submit a separate opt-out request for each item you’d like removed
Check to see if your information is on ZoomInfo by filling out this form:https://www.zoominfo.com/update/remove. Opt out if it has an email on record—they will email you a code. ZoomInfo appears to have moved towards focusing primarily on business rather than individuals.
If you’re a victim of violent crime or identity theft, it’s often possible to opt out of information that others can’t opt out of. You may, however, need to provide court orders or other information. It may be worth checking more complete data broker lists which include those: https://www.privacyrights.org/data-brokers See this resource: https://nnedv.org/mdocs-posts/people-searches-data-brokers/
which prevents creditors from accessing your credit report. (It also prevents credit, loans, and services from being approved in your name, but you will receive a pin to unfreeze your credit, if needed.) You will need to provide personal information such as your name, address, date of birth, and social security number to freeze your credit. While you can sometimes initiate this online, it’s better to do it by phone. Fees for freezing your credit vary by state. To freeze your credit, contact:
- Equifax: 1 (800) 349-9960, https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/credit-freeze/
- Experian: 1 (888) 397‑3742, https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html or https://www.experian.com/ncaconline/freeze
- TransUnion: 1 (888) 909-8872, https://www.transunion.com/credit-freeze/place-credit-freeze or https://service.transunion.com/dss/orderStep1_form.page
- Innovis: 1 (800) 540-2505, https://www.innovis.com/personal/securityFreeze or https://www.innovis.com/securityFreeze/index
offered by your state’s motor vehicle department.
to see if they offer privacy options, such as not listing your number on caller ID or allowing you to opt out of sales of phone numbers.
This list, compiled by Griffin Boyce, has a lot of information on doing so: https://github.com/glamrock/data-brokers/blob/master/data-brokers.md.
You can also opt out of targeted ads using cookies and similar technology at the browser level at https://optout.aboutads.info.
Follow the instructions at https://www.optoutprescreen.com/
https://www.donotcall.gov/register/reg.aspx
DeleteMe, Kanary, OneRep, Optery, Removaly, Reputation Defender, and Reputation.com all offer different opt-out services. Of these options, I have personally paid for and had good experiences with DeleteMe and Kanary. In general, note that removal services are not comprehensive, as some data brokers do not allow third parties to remove listings, and removal services do not include every data broker on this list, let alone outside of it.
Doxing: Tips To Protect Yourself Online & How to Minimize Harm (EFF)
Here are the data brokers quietly buying and selling your personal information (Fast Company)
New Open Source Project Automates Data Deletion Requests by Email (Consumer Reports' Digital Lab blog)
Personal Data Removal Workbook and Credit Freeze Guide (Michael Bazzell)
Preliminary results are in! CCPA testers provide important insights into the landmark privacy law (Medium/Consumer Reports)