We read a lot about data brokers utilising our online information and selling it to third parties, but many articles are often written in a defeatist tone. Informative, but not constructive. In other words, they tell you that "this is what is happening" but don't elaborate on "what you can do about it".
But there are things you can do about your own personal information. The clue's in the name: personal. It's your own private information, so of course, you can control how it is utilised and whether it is utilised at all.
Ascertain The Damage
The first thing you should do is know exactly how far it has gone already. By knowing what kind of data appears on Google search, you can ascertain just how much information on yourself is out there and how you should start to tackle the problem.
Start With Your Accounts
Next, if you're really serious about minimising your digital footprint, you can start to limit the information that you are willingly releasing online. Your social media accounts, for instance, will hold a lot of information that can easily be gleaned by data brokers, so work out how to find and delete old accounts that you are not using - or old accounts that have not been deactivated - and start removing yourself from the websites. This should also include shopping accounts, web services and also email addresses.
Change Your Google Settings
It is likely that you do the majority of your web browsing through Google. Although it isn't exactly a data broker, Google tracks your every move and shares the information with third parties. For this reason, you should log into your privacy settings and toggle everything that might be sharing your information - such as location trackers or customised marketing ads.
Update Google On Outdated Pages
You can also request Google to remove outdated websites that might have your information. This is another important thing to note: if you have an old social media profile or an employee profile on a website, just because you have removed yourself - or your employer has removed it for you - the page can still show up when someone searches your name online. Ordinarily, this is due to Google having outdated versions of the site cached on its servers, so it's your job to make them aware and remove them.
Opt Out Of Data Brokers
Lastly, the most effective thing you can do if you want to control the data you do and do not share is to opt out of data brokers. For the most part, data brokers work anonymously. They do not interact with you personally, so it's very hard to know what information is being retrieved by data brokers and how it is being used.
Data brokers can also put you in dangerous situations, leaving you vulnerable to identity theft, increased costs, scams and the invasion of your own privacy. Opting out of data brokers, therefore, ensures that your information is not being taken outside of your knowledge. You can take back control of what you put out there and how it might be used. As the world grows more digitalised, that can only be a positive thing.
