How you can keep your private data off the Internet
This is a sponsored article. All content and opinions expressed within belong to the author.No matter how much effort you put into keeping your data off of the internet, theres only so much you can do on your own. It can be a hopeless feeling to see your personal information making the rounds on websites youve never even heard of, but getting that information taken down can be all but impossible. Thats where personal data removal services like Incogni can have an enormous impact.Youre probably familiar with people search sites, whether youve ever used one or not. These sketchy search engines allow users to search through public records, data brokers, and other sources to gather information about individuals. That data can include anything from your name, phone number, and address to your criminal record and marital status. For a fee, someone could potentially acquire troves of personally identifiable information about you and your loved ones in an instant.These sites might look relatively innocuous, but theres no telling what someone might do with the information they gather from a data broker. As the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns, survivors of stalking and domestic violence certainly dont want anyone to have easy access to the home address of themselves and their loved ones.The danger of people search sitesImage source: IncogniOne frightening example of how people search sites can put anyone at risk came just a few years ago. The Atlantic reported on Anna Brittain, an author in Alabama who discovered that her children were listed as her sisters associates on the genealogy site FamilyTreeNow. Her sister worked at a child advocacy center, which made her a potential target for retaliation. If anyone attempted to look her sister up online, they might also stumble across the names of her children, putting them at risk as well.Even if your job doesnt involve interacting with people who might have a grievance against you, there are plenty of other ways your personal information can be used against you. Do you ever get spam calls from spoofed numbers or emails from suspicious senders? Where do you think those scammers got your contact information?Having private information floating around online for anyone to access is risky for all of us, but depending on your personal circumstances, it could be a direct threat to your safety. Thats why removing your data from people search sites should be a priority rather than an afterthought.How Incogni keeps your data privateImage source: IncogniIf you want to remove your personal information from a data broker, you have two options. The first is to go through the process of visiting each site, one by one, and requesting to have your data removed. It can be a long, arduous process, and theres no guarantee your information wont pop back up on the same site in the long run.The other option is to use a service like Incogni, which does all the heavy lifting for you. Once you sign up for one of Incognis monthly or yearly plans, the service will begin scanning people search sites for your information. The list of sites Incogni scans is huge more than 270 public and private data brokers and its database continues to grow. Keep in mind that private data brokers pose the biggest threat because they dont readily disclose whose data they have and what theyre doing with it. Incognis newest Unlimited Plan also allows users to submit an unlimited number of requests to have their data removed from sites that are not already included in Incognis standard database.When Incogni spots your information, it sends out automated removal requests to have your records deleted. Incogni repeats this process regularly to ensure the records arent just removed, but stay gone. Best of all, youll get a progress report that tells you how many removal requests have been sent out and when theyve been completed.Plans and pricing informationImage source: IncogniOne of the many ways Incogni stands out is by offering one of the most affordable premium plans on the market while covering more data brokers than similar services more than 270 sites are included in the Standard Plan! Incogni prides itself on specializing in removing information from private data brokers, which often arent covered by other data removal services.Incognis new Unlimited plan gives subscribers the ability to submit as many custom removal requests as they want for sites that arent included in its standard database. Unlimited also features complex removals handled by privacy experts. You can get these same benefits for yourself and up to four of your loved ones with the Family & Friends Plan.Standard Individual Plan: $8.29/moStandard Family & Friends Plan: $16.49/moIndividual Unlimited Plan: $14.99/moFamily Unlimited Plan (covers 5 users): $29.99/moIf seeing your personal information spread across the internet gives you anxiety, paying for a data removal service like Incogni is worth it for the peace of mind alone. Rather than playing whack-a-mole with data brokers every time you jump online, let the professionals at Incogni help you scrub the internet of your records.The post How you can keep your private data off the Internet appeared first on BGR.
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