Your Personal Info Is for Sale — Here’s How to Get It Removed

CYBERRISKED℠
May 4
2 min read

Ever Googled your name and found your home address, phone number, or even the names of your relatives listed on shady-looking people-search sites?

You're not alone — and no, you're not paranoid. That information is real, and it's being bought, sold, and scraped by data brokers every day.

What Are Data Brokers?

Data brokers are companies that collect your personal information from public records, websites, apps, and online purchases — then package and sell it to marketers, recruiters, and sometimes… anyone.

They don’t need your permission.
They make it hard to opt out.
And they’re legally allowed to operate — unless you take action.

How Can You Remove Yourself?

You have two options: manual removal or automated help.

Manual (Free but Time-Intensive)

You can visit each data broker’s site and follow their opt-out process.

Sites include:

Spokeo
Whitepages
BeenVerified
MyLife
Intelius
PeopleFinder
And at least 200 more!

The Catch?

It’s tedious and can take many hours to do
Opt-outs sometimes expire forcing you to do it all again
New sites pop up constantly and it's hard to keep track

Automated (Paid Services)

Several privacy services will monitor and remove your info on your behalf — repeatedly.

Some popular services include:

DeleteMe – https://joindeleteme.com/
Incogni – https://incogni.com/
Kanary – https://www.kanary.com/
OneRep – https://onerep.com/
Optery – https://www.optery.com/
PrivacyBee – https://privacybee.com/
Reputation Defender – https://www.reputationdefender.com/

Prices typically range from $7–$20/month, depending on the plan and provider.

Should You Use One?

If your personal info is already exposed — especially if you're a caregiver, survivor, or public-facing professional — these services can bring peace of mind and practical protection.

At the very least, Google your name + city and see what comes up. You can then decide if you're ok with the results.

Our Final Thought:

You can't control every data leak, but you CAN take back control of where your name, address, and life show up online. Removing your data from brokers won’t make you completely invisible — but it will make you a lot harder to track.