How to Remove Your Personal Information from Data Broker Websites
Data brokers are companies that collect, aggregate, and sell personal information, including names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and more, without you signing up for anything. This information comes from public records, marketing lists, social media, scraped websites, and other sources, and is frequently republished in searchable form.
Because this data is often indexed by search engines and repurposed across platforms, it becomes a privacy risk. Strangers, unsolicited marketers, scammers, or malicious actors can easily access details about you.
Most broker sites do not automatically delete your information. You must request removal. This is usually done through “opt-out,” “privacy request,” or “right to be forgotten” processes. However:
For most of these, you first search for your profile and copy the URL to submit for removal:
| Data Broker | How to Remove | Removal Link |
|---|---|---|
| TruePeopleSearch | Search your name, click View Details, scroll to the bottom, and select Remove This Record. | Link |
| Spokeo | Paste your profile URL into the opt-out form to begin the process. | Link |
| Whitepages | Requires phone verification. Paste your personal URL and complete the automated call. | Link |
| BeenVerified | Search directly on the opt-out page and choose Proceed to Opt Out. | Link |
| Intelius (PeopleConnect Network) | One opt-out request typically removes data from Intelius, TruthFinder, US Search, and Instant Checkmate. | Link |
| Nuwber | Paste your profile URL into the removal form. | Link |
| Thatsthem | Submit exact matching details for removal. | Link |
| FamilyTreeNow | Click Opt Out This Record on your profile. | Link |
| Data Broker | How to Remove | Removal Link |
|---|---|---|
| CyberBackgroundChecks | Opt-Out | Opt-Out Link |
| SearchPeopleFree | Opt-Out | Opt-Out Link |
| ClustrMaps | Opt-Out | Opt-Out Link |
| CocoFinder | Email at support@cocofinder.com | Email CocoFinder |
| MyLife | Opt-Out | Opt-Out Link |
Below are tools and services that streamline or automate this process, ranging from DIY guides to full-service removal platforms:
| Tool / Service | What It Does | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| DeleteMe | Opt-out guidance + service that submits removal requests for you. | DeleteMe |
| Optery | Data removal from Google and 700+ broker sites. | Optery |
| Incogni | Automated broker removal on your behalf. | Incogni |
| Cloaked | Removal + prevention with aliases. | Cloaked |
| Manual DIY Lists (e.g., GitHub opt-out links) | You manually follow opt-out URLs. | GitHub Opt-Out List |
Tip: Paid services save time but can’t delete everything from the internet, especially social media, news sites, or public records.
You can request Google to remove specific URLs displaying your personal info from search results, though this doesn’t delete it from the source site. Google Support
Introduction Bash scripting is a powerful way to automate Linux tasks, but writing a script…
Introduction A self-signed SSL certificate is a certificate that is created and signed by the…
Introduction Debugging is an important part of Bash scripting. When a script does not work…
Introduction Cron jobs are used in Linux to run commands or Bash scripts automatically at…
Introduction Pipes are an important feature in Linux and Bash scripting. A pipe allows you…
Introduction The grep, awk, and sed commands are powerful text-processing tools in Linux. They are…