Tips for Protecting Your Data from Data Brokers
Data brokers are capable of collecting a lot of personal information about you, such as what you buy, what your hobbies are, where you are located, your age, your marital status, and more. If this makes you feel uncomfortable, you aren’t alone. A lot of people want to gain control over the information that data brokers can access and hold about them. So, we have compiled a list of tips that can help you protect your data and keep it more secure.
Browse the Internet More Privately
When you use the internet to visit a variety of websites and social media pages, you are leaving behind a trail that data collectors might be able to use to gain more information about you. So, if you want to protect yourself from data collectors, you can try different strategies to make your browsing more private and secure. For example, you can turn off cookies or at least delete them on a regular basis, such as every day, and you can use search engines like DuckDuckGo that are designed to provide more privacy than search engines like Google.
Check the Settings on All of the Apps and Accounts You Use
If you are using apps on your computer and smartphone, you might be giving away data about yourself without realizing it. So, go through the settings of every app carefully to see if there are any changes you can make to ensure your data is not collected, your activity is not monitored closely, and details like your location are not tracked. Do this for both paid apps and free apps. Then, do the same for all of the accounts you have with various businesses, such as stores you have shopped from and credit cards you have opened. See if there are any ways to tell them that you don’t want them to share any of your data with third parties.
Opt Out of Having Your Information on People Search Websites
There are many people search websites out there these days, and they might all be displaying information about you without your permission. Nuwber is one of many, so you can start by heading there and typing in your full name to see if any listings show up. You might be surprised by all of the information that these types of websites have been able to collect about you over time, and how much info is displayed for all to see. But the good news is that these sites do have opt out options, so take advantage of them. It might take some time, but it will be worth it to go through the removal process for these types of websites, which you can find by doing a basic search using your full name on a search engine.
Be Careful About What You Post Online
When you use social media every day, you might not realize just how much information you’re sharing about yourself on those platforms. The more you share, the easier it might be for data collectors to gather information about you, so keep your accounts private and avoid giving away too much about yourself.
As you can see, there are several ways you can go about protecting your data as best as possible from the data brokers that are out there hoping to find, collect, store, and share information about you. So, take action today to regain some control and feel more secure.
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