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"They do that as a 'courtesy,' but they make it annoying and routinely change the process for doing it."Īs a public service, Grauer maintains an online document called the Big Ass Data Broker Opt-Out List, which is a continuously updated list of every major people-search website and their process for deleting your information. "Technically, none of them have to allow you to opt out," says Grauer. Instead, the only surefire way to opt out of people-search websites is to contact each one, website by website. (California is the only state with a law that empowers its residents to demand that companies disclose and delete their personal data, but even that law excludes publicly available information.) What's most frustrating to privacy advocates like Grauer is that there is no federal law or single online form you can fill out - like the National Do Not Call Registry - to delete your information from people-search websites. "There's this database where I can look up somebody's name, address and everybody they live with." "To me, the thing that's the most bizarre is that they're selling or giving away your information without your knowledge," says Yael Grauer, an investigative reporter with Consumer Reports who covers digital privacy and security. People-search sites will also scour social media websites like Facebook and LinkedIn, or buy the data directly from those companies (check your privacy settings!). Some information is purchased from other data brokers, like lead-generation companies that collect personal data through sweepstakes entries, surveys and mailing lists.
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Some of it is publicly available information like real estate transactions, voter registrations, marriage licenses and divorce decrees, unsealed lawsuits and sex offender registrations. People-search websites get their information in a variety of ways. The data broker industry is sprawling and largely unregulated, and includes powerful players like Google and credit-reporting companies like Experian. People-search websites are a type of "data broker," a business that collects and sells personal information. Well-known websites like Spokeo, and PeopleFinder make up only a small fraction of the hundreds of people-search websites out there (according to a list from privacy company Kanary). What Are People-Search Sites and How Do They Get Your Data?