The 8 Best Data Broker Removal Services To Choose From

Is a Data Broker Removal Service Worth It? 

Your personal data is a hot commodity for hackers, scammers, and telemarketers. In 2023 alone, there were 3,205 publicly reported data breaches — the highest number ever recorded in a single year, and more than double the number of breaches in the previous year [*]. 

Once your personal data is online, it’s collected by data brokers who package and resell it to marketing firms, government agencies, or even shady individuals.  

Data broker removal services offer a way to “clean up” your digital profile. These services scan data broker databases, people search sites, and other online sources for your personal information — and either help you to remove it yourself or request its removal on your behalf. 

But not all data broker removal providers offer the same level of service — with many charging a premium for lackluster results. In this guide, we’ll explore how data broker removal services work, whether or not they’re safe to use, and the eight best options to consider right now. 

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How Do Data Broker Removal Services Work?

Data broker removal services scan data broker databases for your personal information — including your name, address, contact details, employment history, and more — and then compile privacy reports detailing what information is available, who has it, and the steps required in the removal process.

With hundreds of data brokers in the United States alone, manually requesting the removal of your personal information is a time-consuming undertaking.  

That’s why many providers offer deletion services that handle takedown and opt-out requests on your behalf. Some even periodically check back to make sure brokers haven’t re-added your information to their files, while others are bundled with data protection tools, identity monitoring, customer support, and more. 

Here are some of the features most high-quality data removal services offer:

• Data broker takedown requests. Services differ in how many data brokers they scan, whether or not they’ll submit take-down requests on your behalf, and how often they rescan broker databases. 
• Dark Web scanning. Some services also scan the Dark Web (and data breach notifications) for your more sensitive personal information — including your Social Security number (SSN), phone number, and credit card information. While services can’t remove your data from the Dark Web, they can warn you before scammers and hackers take advantage of it.
• Online account monitoring. When bundled with data protection tools, these services warn you if your online accounts and passwords have been compromised or leaked. 
• Online presence and reputation management. Many services can also scan social media accounts and other pieces of your digital footprint for potentially revealing, embarrassing, or outdated content tied to your name. 
• Online privacy protection. To help prevent your data from being leaked in the first place, some services also include features like email aliases, virtual private networks (VPNs), anti-track browser extensions, secure browsing tools, and more.

The bottom line: The more personal information that’s available about you online, the more at risk you are of scams, spam, and identity theft. While data removal services can help clean up your online footprint, they can’t promise to completely remove all of your data. Instead, it pays to take steps to remove your personal information from the internet.

Are data removal services safe to use? 

Most data removal services are safe to use. Data deletion companies are rarely involved in scams in the way that fake antivirus vendors sometimes are. 

However, using a data removal service does come with some risks. Here’s what you should be aware of before signing up for a service:

• Giving your personal information to any service puts you at risk of a data breach. Data broker removal services need to know what information to remove, which means you have to share data with them. If they are hacked or targeted by a data breach, your information could be exposed.
• Most services don’t protect your identity or online accounts. Data broker opt-out services charge a premium to find and (sometimes) help you remove your personal information — but they won’t do much to protect you against the risks that go along with having your data exposed, such as identity theft, hacking, and phishing attacks. 
• Data brokers continually re-add your information to their databases. Submitting a takedown request does not prevent you from appearing in broker databases in the future. Not all data removal services rescan and resubmit takedown requests on a regular basis.
• Many brokers are slow to respond to takedown requests (or ignore them). Some data brokers make the contents of their databases private, so you can’t tell if your information is included or not. This gives them the ability to delay taking down customer data or ignore takedown requests entirely.

The 8 Best Data Broker Removal Services Right Now

1. Aura
2. Optery
3. Incogni
4. DeleteMe
5. Privacy Bee
6. IDX Complete
7. Norton Reputation Defender
8. Kanary

The best data broker removal providers combine comprehensive data “clean up” services with protective features that prevent your personal data from being leaked in the future. 

Here are our top picks for the services worth paying for: 

1. Aura

Aura is an award-winning all-in-one digital security solution that includes identity and credit monitoring, Dark Web scanning, data broker removal services, 24/7 support, and more. While Aura is a relatively new brand in the online privacy and safety industry, it has already been rated #1 by Forbes, TechRadar, USNews.com, Security.org, and more. 

Aura’s Privacy Plan is just $19.99/year — or just over $1/month — and includes automatic data broker opt-outs, device security (antivirus, VPN, Safe Browsing, and phishing protection), identity and Dark Web monitoring, 24/7 customer support, and more.

Here’s a deeper look at the pros and cons of Aura’s Privacy Plans:

Aura plans and pricing:

Aura offers affordable privacy protection plans for just over $1/month (billed as $19.99/year with a 60-day money-back guarantee).

Who should choose Aura?

Aura is an excellent choice for people who are concerned about marketers, advertisers, and hackers gaining access to their data. It provides a complete solution for reducing robocalls, junk mail, and spam, while warning you when your personal information ends up in public records databases and more.

2. Optery

Optery is a stand-alone service that removes your personal data from hundreds of data broker websites. It offers a free tier that provides steps on how to manually submit data removal requests, and shows users exactly what information major brokers have on them.

Optery plans and pricing:

Optery offers different pricing plans based on the number of data brokers you want it to scan, as well as whether or not you want automated take-down requests. 

Here’s a look at Optery’s pricing plans as of April 2024:

• Free (basic scans and self-service opt-out)
• Core (automated removal from 110+ websites): $3.99/month
• Extended (automated and manual removal from 230+ websites): $14.99/month
• Ultimate (full-service removal from 335+ websites): $24.99/month

Who should choose Optery?

Optery stands out for the sheer number of data broker sites that it scans. However, its expensive monthly plans and lack of additional security features mean that it’s likely not enough to keep your online data and identity safe — especially when compared to more comprehensive options. 

💡 Related: How To Remove Yourself From Data Broker Sites →

3. Incogni

Incogni is a data removal tool owned by VPN company Surfshark. It operates in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Europe, taking advantage of different data protection laws to support its scanning and takedown requests. 

While Incogni scans a high number of data brokers for your personal information, its expensive plan options and lack of additional tools mean it might not be the best choice. Plus, some customers have complained about receiving an increase in spam and scam emails after signing up for the service [*].

Incogni plans and pricing:

Incogni only offers a single plan option, with a significant discount for users who pay upfront for a full year. 

Here are Incogni’s payment plans as of April 2024:

• Paid annually: $6.49/month (or $77.88 for the year)
• Paid monthly: $12.98/month

Who should choose Incogni?

Incogni’s compliance-oriented approach is good for residents of territories that have strong privacy laws in place, like Europe, Canada, or California. Not all U.S. states have similar laws in place, which means Incogni’s approach won’t always produce the best results.

4. DeleteMe

DeleteMe is one of the oldest services to focus exclusively on removing customer information from data broker websites and search engines. It has a straightforward approach compared to many of its competitors, with a tighter focus on a smaller number of data brokers.

DeleteMe plans and pricing:

DeleteMe provides different plan options depending on the number of people you want to protect and the length of your contract. 

Here’s a breakdown of DeleteMe’s pricing and plans as of April 2024:

• Individual: $10.75/month (1-year plan) or $8.71/month (2-year plan).
• Couple: $19.08/month (1-year plan) or $14.54/month (2-year plan).
• Family: $27.42/month (1-year plan) or $20.79/month (2-year plan).

Who should choose DeleteMe?

DeleteMe only focuses on 72 websites and doesn’t offer the advanced features that many of its competitors do. It doesn’t represent a good enough value to recommend over some of the other options on this list.

💡 Related: How To Remove Your Personal Information From Radaris (Opt Out Guide) →

5. Privacy Bee

Privacy Bee offers a number of features that let customers take control over their personal data on the internet. This includes data-sharing filters for companies and services you use, data breach notifications, privacy browser extensions, and more. 

Privacy Bee plans and pricing:

Privacy Bee offers a single subscription plan that costs $197/year (as of April 2024). There is no monthly option, free trial, or money-back guarantee, so you have to pay upfront for the full year.

Who should choose Privacy Bee?

If you want more in-depth trust management features, Privacy Bee might be for you. The ability to trust certain websites with your data while blocking others could be useful in some scenarios, and Privacy Bee offers an excellent set of tools for that purpose. However, the subscription price is considerably higher than other services that offer more comprehensive protection. 

💡 Related: How To Remove Your Personal Information From TruthFinder →

6. IDX Privacy 

IDX is an identity theft protection company that offers privacy protection plans with data broker removal (powered by ForgetMe), online protection, and more. IDX offers a privacy-focused plan (IDX Privacy) with limited credit and identity monitoring. For full protection, you’ll need to opt for the more expensive IDX Complete plan.

One of the unique features included in the IDX Complete and Privacy plans is a “Privacy Score” that gives you a snapshot of your overall risk level based on the actions you take. 

IDX Complete plans and pricing:

IDX offers a range of different plans that either focus on identity protection, online privacy, or both. However, the cheapest plan option — IDX Identity — doesn’t include any data broker removal services.

Here’s a look at IDX’s pricing plans as of April 2024:

• IDX Privacy (data broker removal, online privacy tools, and insurance): $12.95/month
• IDX Complete (includes three-bureau credit monitoring and identity protection): $32.90/month

IDX Complete charges $355 per year for its full-featured annual subscription, making it one of the most expensive options on the market. Its IDX Privacy tier lacks the credit monitoring and identity theft features, but still costs $99.95 per year.

Who should choose IDX Complete?

IDX Complete offers a decent combination of services, but its $355/year price point makes it hard to recommend. While the IDX Privacy tier may give you what you need, it lacks the credit monitoring and identity theft features, but still costs nearly $140/year.

There is no reason to recommend IDX Complete over competitors that offer the same features and services at a significantly lower price.

7. Norton Reputation Defender

Reputation Defender is a data privacy application created by Norton, one of the most popular names in consumer cybersecurity. Unlike the other services on this list, Reputation Defender focuses on “cleaning up” your online presence through custom takedown requests for news websites, blog articles, and other sites hosting potentially damaging or revealing information about you. 

This makes it a powerful tool for job seekers, business owners, executives, and large corporations that want to ensure their search profiles are clean — but it’s overkill for most individuals. 

Reputation Defender plans and pricing:

Reputation Defender requires a phone or online consultation before revealing pricing information — but plan options typically range from $3,000 – $25,000+/year [*].

Who should choose Norton Reputation Defender?

This product is best for high net-worth individuals, celebrities, and executive leaders who need to protect their brands from misleading articles and disinformation. If you’re looking for a data broker removal service, this product is most likely not for you.

8. Kanary

Kanary provides straightforward data removal services for more than 1,000 different websites. It conducts scans every month, submits removal requests every week, and promises results within 48 hours.

Kanary plans and pricing:

Kanary offers a free plan that scans the same sites as the paid plans — but only offers three automatic removals. The paid plans offer a full-service approach with a custom email to facilitate takedown requests faster. 

Here’s a breakdown of Kanary’s pricing and plans as of April 2024:

• Free Trial: free
• Premium: $16.99/month or $179.88/year
• Additional family members: $7.49/month (on annual plan) or $8.49/month (on monthly plans)

Note: Kanary only includes custom email addresses and its fastest support if you pay upfront for a full year. You’ll also get a slight discount for family members if you pay annually.

Who should choose Kanary?

Kanary is not cheap, but you can add family members to your subscription at a 50% discount. This might make the service worthwhile for large families, but there are still lower-priced options available.

How To Protect Your Privacy Online

Data removal services offer valuable services, but it’s better to prevent third parties from accessing your information in the first place. 

Whether you choose to sign up for a data broker removal service or not, you should take care to practice good cyber hygiene and keep your data away from advertisers and scammers.

Here are some tips you can use to keep your data safe:

• Delete accounts and apps you no longer use. Don’t let online e-commerce accounts and other websites use your data longer than they have to. Deactivate old accounts and delete data that is no longer useful to you. Start using guest accounts when making purchases from online shops.
• Use a temporary email address to register for new apps. You don’t have to use one email address for every account. Use a temporary email service when you sign up for a new account, or create a secondary email that automatically forwards messages to your main inbox.
• Activate your browser’s anti-tracking tools. Modern web browsers come with some anti-tracking tools, but you can enhance your security even more by using a VPN. Don’t confuse your browser’s anti-tracking tools with incognito mode, though — this only protects your device from people who physically use it, like friends and family members.
• Archive or delete old social media content. By default, most social media profiles reveal too much information about you. Review your privacy settings and take down content that advertisers and scammers could use against you.
• Check if your email address or other data have been leaked. Run a free Dark Web scan to find out if your information is for sale on secret Dark Web marketplaces. Take action to protect your identity before scammers target you.
• Don’t share sensitive information on unsecured apps. Most email and messaging apps don’t protect the information that users share. Even privacy-oriented apps like WhatsApp and Telegram should not be trusted.

The Bottom Line: Your Private Data Should Be Yours To Control

If data brokers gain access to your information, you may find yourself targeted by ads, scams, and hacking attempts far more often than usual. But preventing your data from ending up in these databases is just one part of practicing effective cyber hygiene.

Many companies make bold promises about how data broker removal services will shield you from scams and fraud. In reality, most of these services neglect to protect you from the actual scams that hackers use to leverage your personal data against you.

Aura provides you with robust online identity and privacy protection, combining data broker removal services with identity theft protection, 24/7 Dark Web monitoring, advanced digital security tools, 24/7 support, and more.