PORTLAND, Ore. — If you’re worried about data breaches and private information getting hacked, here’s something to think about: A lot of your personal data is already up for grabs.
It’s posted for free on people search websites like Spokeo, Pipl and PeekYou.com.
“It can be everything from your basic contact information and demographics, but it can even go as deep as identifying everything you purchased,” said tech security analyst Ken Westin.
People search sites, or data brokers, collect information about consumers from various sources including public records and social media.
“Our technology analyzes content from over 60 social sites, news sources, homepages and blog platforms and identifies the actual people behind it, combining their scattered digital footprints into a comprehensive record of their online identity,” explains the PeekYou website.
Most people search websites require just a little information, like a person’s name. Then, they spit out all kinds of results including your family history, address, phone number, email, social media accounts and more.
The most basic information is often provided for free. A deeper dive, which requires a payment or subscription fee, can reveal more sensitive information. Some people search sites detail how many people live in your home, how much money you make and if you have a criminal history.
“You start to look at social media, government data, you’ve got purchase information. You bring all that data together and you can start to draw connections and really get a rich, in-depth profile of a particular person,” said Westin.
The people search sites promote how this personal information can be used to bring people together by reuniting friends or relatives.
There’s nothing unlawful about posting this personal data online.
“I think that’s kind of the scary part is that we don’t really have any control if the information gets out,” said Westin. “We don’t have control over who has access to it- who is using this kind of information.”
Removing your information from people search sites is possible, but not easy. Here are some tips on how to opt-out of search sites.
Set your social media accounts to private. Make social media accounts accessible only to friends and family. If data brokers can’t access your accounts, they can’t scoop up data.
Delete old apps or online accounts. Remember that app you installed months ago, but seldom use? It could be tracking your online activity. If you don’t use it, delete it.
Opt-out. Most people search websites allow consumers to opt out, but it is time consuming and requires users to jump through several hoops. To make things easier, we’ve compiled an opt-out list for several popular people search sites.
Opt-out list
AnyWho - www.anywho.com/help/privacy
FamilyTreeNow - www.familytreenow.com/optout
InstantPeopleFinder - www.instantpeoplefinder.com/optout.php
PeekYou - www.peekyou.com/about/contact/optout
Pipl - www.pipl.com/help/remove
ReversePhone Lookup - www.reversephonelookup.com/remove.php
Spokeo - www.spokeo.com/optout
White Pages - www.whitepages.com/suppression_requests
Zabasearch - www.zabasearch.com/block_records/