How and Why to Remove Your Personal Information from Google & Data Broker Sites (Part 1)

Safeguarding personal privacy by removing your personal information online

Welcome to another issue of Secrets of Privacy where we discuss personal privacy related topics and provide practical tips to enhance your personal privacy. This is Part 1 in a two part series on removing your personal information from search engines and data broker sites.

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Many of our readers will recall the 1998 movie Something About Mary that centered around the middle-aged character Ted Stroehmann, who was still infatuated with his high school prom date, Mary. Years after a disastrous prom experience with Mary, Ted hires a private investigator to find Mary and gather information about her life. Using the info provided by the private investigator, Ted is able to gain the unsuspecting Mary’s trust and seamlessly reinsert himself back into her life.

Fast forward to 2024 and the type of stalking in Something about Mary is near effortless thanks to data broker and people search sites.

Now you can acquire detailed personal information on subjects, such as name, residential address history, phone number, work history, email address and even family member relations from you living room, and often times for free. As we'll note below with a real life example, combining the data broker databases with advanced AI software will make maintaining personal privacy increasingly difficult. Bad Actors will use this technology to create sophisticated, ultra-realistic schemes and scams that are hard for even the most astute individuals to see through.

Professionals, business owners and other HNWI need to be aware of the presence and potential risks associated with data broker and people search sites. These platforms, often operating in the shadows of the internet, collect, aggregate, and sell personal information, raising concerns about privacy and security.