I assure you I’m not trying to scare you. But you should know that everything you do online is tracked. All the sites you visit, the purchases you make, the media, and the content you share it’s all linked to a digital footprint or invisible profile. Data brokers, the people who collect and manage this data, have information like your name, address, age, phone numbers, relatives, accounts, property values of the properties you own, occupation and salary info, past addresses you’ve lived at, and so much more. It really doesn’t take much to expose this data either. There is a way to not only uncover this data for yourself but also remove it. You can take back control of that digital footprint, once and for all, and it’s surprisingly easy. How? It’s called DeleteMe, a unique service that connects you with experts to help find and remove all of those sensitive details.
Essentially, you’d have to go to most, if not all data brokers yourself and complete the opt-out process. Because there are so many, and your data can keep reappearing over time, that task seems insurmountable. DeleteMe experts will do it all for you. If you’re interested, now’s a great time to give the service a try. That’s because you can save 25% off for Black Friday and Cyber Monday and kickstart the data removal process for way less than it usually costs.
How do data brokers collect your data?
Maybe you’ve been vigilant about not sharing your data publicly. There is a chance your digital profile may be incomplete. However, it’s more likely that the data aggregators still have all that information. They collect data sets from a variety of different sources like public records, existing databases, information you share with various brands or companies, and much more.
For example, let’s say you sign up for a sweepstakes to win a free vacation or a cruise. It might ask for your address, location, name, phone number, email, and other personally identifying information. Data brokers can then purchase that information or acquire it, before adding it to their own database.
They can also get information from loyalty programs you join, and credit card providers including purchase history, social media networks, online quizzes, gaming activities, and much, much more.
How do these companies use the data?
Agencies called Consumer Reporting Agencies (CRAs) have an explicit goal to collect as much information about consumers and compile them into actionable reports that businesses and companies can leverage. They are beholden to legal guidelines as set forth by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
CRAs are not necessarily the same as data brokers. Many reports compiled by reporting agencies are broad in scope and designed to give information about large demographics or groups rather than specific individuals. However, that doesn’t mean they don’t infringe on your privacy.
Actual data brokers will sell digital caches they have gathered to various parties, which allows them to both review and utilize the information contained within. You will never be informed when they do, nor will you know — except through deep searching — who has your data.
Aren’t there laws to protect personal data and privacy?
Federal law and privacy-related laws do exist, but not all are created equal and it varies from State to State, and even country to country. Even with laws in place, data brokers are willing to use less-than-ethical methods most of the time to get their hands on private or sensitive information.
Just because there are rules or laws in place, doesn’t mean they follow them. That’s an unfortunate reality in today’s landscape. That’s also why it’s important for you to take charge and find ways to control and remove your data wherever possible. Yet, it’s not something you should have to do alone and with no support. That’s where DeleteMe comes into the equation.
How does DeleteMe work?
First, you submit your personal information for removal from places like search engines and data broker sites. From there, experts take the wheel and help find and remove everything you want to go. The process starts from there and in about a week — seven days — you’ll have a detailed report of everywhere they found you online and they’ll kick off the removal process. As long as you remain an active member of DeleteMe, they’ll continue to remove personal info, regularly, all year long. So, that data won’t become a problem again.
The list of sites they have removed from is long, too long to include here with more than 750 data brokers. If you want to know all of the sites that DeleteMe have removed from they have you can browse.
There are more hidden benefits to deleting your data
What you may not realize is that, while, yes, it’s scary knowing mysterious entities have your data and control it, however, there’s a lot more at play. All of that information could be easily exposed, collected, and used against you by nefarious and would-be attackers. Specifically, it puts you at a much higher risk of being the target of phishing scams and identity theft. That information is also how new entities can contact you to, for example, send scam or spam emails to your known email address.
Simply put, the more you’re able to remove through DeleteMe the more protected you are from various digital elements. Removing your email from a public data broker database can help cut down on spam emails you’re receiving. Regaining your privacy by hiding your phone number can also cut down on those robocalls and spam calls you get. The hidden benefits go above and beyond just seizing control of your data. In many cases, it can even improve your lifestyle and give you some breathing room. I know my email is flooded daily with nonsense so that would be a huge boon to me, not including the rest.
Take advantage of Black Friday and Cyber Week discounts
If you want to give it a try, you can do that right now and enjoy 25% off. It’s not difficult to get started and you’ll have results in less than a week.
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