Is it free to opt out of people-search sites?

Generally, yes. The FTC notes that you can opt out of people-search sites individually for free, or use a paid service that handles opt-outs on your behalf.

How much personal information should I give a broker to verify my identity?

Only enough for the company to process the request. Be careful with third-party sites that ask for more than necessary, and submit your request directly to the company that holds your information when you can.

Are people-search sites data brokers?

Yes. The FTC notes that people-search sites are a type of data broker. They turn public records and social media posts into searchable reports about individuals.

Why does my information come back after I opt out?

A broker can pick up new information from another source, or your details may sit in another broker's database where they can be collected again. The FTC also notes that information can reappear when public records change.

How to Remove Your Personal Information From Data Brokers

To remove yourself from data broker sites, find each site that lists you, send its opt-out or deletion request, keep the confirmation and check back later, because listings return. The request itself is usually the easy part. Finding every place you appear, and keeping you off them, is where the work is.

This guide covers what data brokers are, how to find your listings, how to get them removed and what to expect afterwards.

What are data brokers?

Data brokers are companies that collect personal information about you, combine it into a profile and sell or share it with other businesses.

Some pull from public records. Others buy from websites, apps, marketing databases or other brokers.

People-search sites are the kind most people meet first. They turn public records and social media posts into searchable reports on individuals, and the FTC counts them as a type of data broker.

What they hold varies a lot, but it can include:

Full name and previous names
Home address and previous addresses
Phone numbers and email addresses
Age or date of birth
Names of relatives and associates
Property information
Employment or professional information
Public records
Online activity or interests
Inferences about you based on other information

No two brokers collect exactly the same things. The risk comes from the combination: a phone number on its own says little, but next to your address and your relatives' names it says a lot.

Why is my information on data broker sites?

You don't need an account with a data broker for it to have a file on you. Brokers pull from public records, websites and other databases and stitch the pieces together.

So you search your own name and find a company you've never heard of showing your old address. It feels backwards, and it's normal.

The details can also be out of date or simply wrong. Removing them from one site doesn't remove them from the original source, or from every other company that got the same data. That's why broker removal works better as a habit than as a one-off cleanup.

Also read: How to Prevent Data Breaches in 8 Ways

Why should you remove your data from data brokers?

A listing on a broker site doesn't mean anything bad has happened. It does mean that anyone curious can piece together who you are and where you live with very little effort.

It also makes scams more convincing. Someone who already knows your previous address or your sister's name has far more to work with when they pretend to be your bank or a relative. Every listing you remove gives them less.

If what worries you is a copy of your driver's license rather than a broker listing, here's what someone can actually do with your ID.

How to find your information on data broker sites

No single database shows every broker that holds your information. You start by searching for yourself.

1. Search for your name

Search your full name on Google and at least one other search engine. Then try variations, since each can surface different sites:

Your full name
Your name and city
Your name and state
Your name and previous city
Your name and phone number
Your name and address

Look for pages that show your personal details. People-search sites, public profile pages and pages that pull together information about individuals are the ones to note.

2. Check the result before submitting a request

A profile with your name isn't necessarily yours. Common names turn up several people with similar details, so match on at least two things, like your age and a previous address. It matters because the removal form may ask you to verify your identity, and you don't want to verify for a stranger's record.

3. Look for the site's privacy or opt-out page

Once you've found a listing, look for a link with wording like:

Opt out
Do not sell or share my information
Do not sell my personal information
Privacy choices
Privacy request
Remove my information
Delete my information

Every company words it differently. Some put the link in the footer of every page. Others make you dig up a privacy page, find your own profile again and pass a verification step before the form even appears.

How to remove yourself from data broker sites

Once you've found a profile, the process usually runs like this.

Step 1: Find the broker's removal process

Use the site's own privacy or opt-out instructions. Be wary of third-party pages that ask for more personal details than the request needs. Where you can, go straight to the company that holds your information.

Step 2: Locate your profile

Some people-search sites let you search for your profile first. Others ask for details to identify your record. Confirm it's really you before going further.

Step 3: Submit the opt-out or deletion request

Follow the site's instructions. Depending on the company and where you live, you may be able to have your information deleted, or opt out of some uses of it. Which rights you have depends on your location and the laws that cover that company.

Step 4: Complete verification

The broker may ask you to prove you're the person making the request. Give it what it needs to process the request and nothing more. Handing a broker extra personal data to get your personal data removed defeats the point.

Step 5: Save confirmation

Keep the confirmation email or a screenshot of the request. If the listing reappears, you'll want proof of the earlier request when you follow up.

Also read: How to Get My Information Off the Dark Web

Can I remove my information from every data broker at once?

Usually not. In most places you send requests company by company, and one broker removing you tells no other broker to do the same.

California is the big exception. Its Delete Request and Opt-out Platform (DROP) lets residents send one deletion request to participating registered data brokers. Under the current California rules, brokers started processing these requests on August 1, 2026.

California's Data Broker Registry is useful too: residents can see which registered brokers operate and what kinds of information they say they collect.

Outside California, your options depend on where you live and which privacy laws apply to you.

Why removing your data once is not enough

A broker can remove you today and list you again in a few months. It may pick up fresh data from another source, or your details may still sit in another broker's database, ready to be collected again.

The FTC warns specifically that opting out of people-search sites doesn't remove information from public records, and that listings can return when those records change.

In practice it's a loop:

Find your information → request removal → confirm removal → check again → repeat

For a handful of sites, you can keep up. Across dozens of brokers it becomes a standing chore.

How to keep your information from reappearing

You can't control every source. You can slow down how much new information about you enters the system.

Review old accounts: Close the ones you no longer use and delete personal details you don't need on the rest.
Check privacy settings: See which apps and services can read your contacts or location.
Be selective about what you publish: Every public profile gives brokers more to collect and match with other records.
Use a separate email address where it makes sense: A second address for newsletters and shopping keeps your main one out of marketing lists.
Repeat your searches: Search your name every few months to catch new profiles early.

None of this makes you invisible. It makes your profile thinner and harder to assemble.

Can a data removal service do this for me?

Yes. Data removal services automate much of the finding and the sending. That's where the time goes: not one request, but dozens of sites with their own forms, plus checking again when listings come back.

Option	Who can use it	What it involves
Opt out yourself	Anyone	Free, one site at a time, each with its own form and verification
California DROP	California residents	One deletion request to participating registered brokers
Data removal service	Anyone	Paid; the service handles opt-outs on your behalf

Table: The main ways to get your information off data broker sites.

The FTC notes that you can generally opt out of people-search sites one by one for free, or pay a service to do it for you. When comparing services, look at what happens after the first round. A good one shows you where your information appears, which requests went out and what it does when a new listing turns up.

If DeleteMe is the name you already know, we lined up six services like DeleteMe so you can compare them on the same points.

Already weighing the two best-known names? Our Incogni vs DeleteMe comparison puts them next to each other.

What data broker removal can and cannot do

Removal cuts down your public exposure. It doesn't delete your whole digital footprint.

A request usually affects only the company that receives it. It won't remove the original public record, it won't touch unrelated companies holding the same data, and it won't stop someone collecting new information about you somewhere else. Monitoring is what catches the listings that come back.

How to remove your data from data brokers with Serus

You can do all of this by hand. Keeping it up for years is the hard part.

Serus finds where your personal information appears across data brokers and other public sources, then sends the removal requests for you. With Autopilot on, it keeps scanning for new broker listings and files removal requests automatically when one appears.

You can follow each request from submission to completion in one place, instead of keeping a spreadsheet of brokers and dates.

You don't need to disappear from the internet. You need to know what's out there and have something that keeps shrinking it, without relying on you to remember every broker.

Run a free scan with Serus to see where you're listed.

How to Remove Yourself from Data Broker Sites