Your data is worth big money — and you can take it back

April 10, 2024

By Kim Komando

“Call me for a good time.” That simple message prompted more creepy calls and texts than you can believe. A woman contacted me after someone posted that message — alongside her cellphone number — on a porn site.

How’d it happen? A pervert who was stalking her daughter found the number online. And it’s easier than you think. I bet you could find your cell number online in a few minutes. Some people search sites even offer it up for free. Others charge a few bucks for that and a lot more …

Data brokers know it all

They scour to build a rich profile of exactly who you are. That includes:

• Public records: Think birth certificates, marriage licenses, voter registration, property ownership and court records. It’s all up for grabs.
• Social media: They use automated tools to collect anything public.
• Commercial sources: This includes companies you interact with, like retailers or loyalty programs. Surprise — many of them sell your purchase history, interests, and website traffic to brokers.
• Self-reported info: Ever filled out a warranty card, entered a contest or taken a survey online? Yup, they have that too.

The list goes on and on: Every time you browse the web, interact with an app or use a service, you leave behind a data trail. 

These data dealers gather all that up, package it and sell it to people search sites, which then hawk it to anyone willing to pay. This opens you up to problems, from identity theft to doxing to an inbox filled with spam.

Make yourself hard to find

Listen, you can’t delete yourself from the internet. But, you can make a big dent in how easy all these details are to find. Think of it like locking your car or putting a security system in your home. Will it stop all crime? No, but it’s a big deterrent. 

Trouble is, doing it yourself is a huge chore. Luckily, there are services that do the dirty work for you. Incogni is the best I’ve found.

They have a massive list …

Of all the creepy databases storing your info — and will send them removal requests faster than you can say “spam overload.” No kidding, Incogni saved me 113 hours. Told you it’s a pain to DIY.

Creating an account took me a few minutes, then they got to work. My info is totally wiped from almost 200 shady sites and my spam calls and texts are down to zero. It’s seriously amazing.

✅ Ready to take back control? I snagged a sweet deal just for you: 60% off with code KIM60. Don’t wait — hit the reset button on your privacy today. I’m sure glad I did.