According to a study undertaken in 2023, around 71% of US adults are now worried about their personal data and how it is being used by companies and governmental bodies. Despite their concern, however, many people still don’t know exactly how their data is collected and what they can do to protect themselves. 

For the most part, many believe that they have to opt-in to having their cookies collected by companies – and if they say no to data collection, then their data will not be collected. But if only it was as easy as that. Unfortunately, the collection of big data in 2024 goes far beyond the few companies that you as a consumer actually interact with. Indeed, every time you click onto the internet, it’s likely you’re already being tracked.

The Thing About Data Brokers

This is all down to the existence of data brokers. For those unaware, data brokers are entities that collect, aggregate, and sell personal information to the highest bidders – often without their knowledge or consent. These brokers gather their data from a variety of sources, compiling it into detailed profiles that could include anything from your name, your gender, your hobbies, even your address and phone number. 

The most common source is online activity. Unbeknownst to you, data brokers can track your online behaviour through cookies, browsing history, social media activity, and your online purchases. This can be gathered through partnerships with websites or by using tracking technology, ensuring that nothing you do while online is private and you are always leaving a digital footprint. 

The term ‘digital footprint’ is used a lot when discussing internet privacy. This is the trail of data that you leave behind when you use the internet, including all the information that you intentionally share online – such as social media posts, emails you send, comments you leave on blogs, and information you provide when making purchases – and the data you leave without your explicit input or knowledge – derived from apps tracking your browsing history, apps collecting location data, or search queries being logged by search engines.

When it comes to how you can reduce your digital footprint, thankfully, there are numerous data removal tools at your disposal. These are tools that cover a wide range of data brokers – including PSS, marketing, recruitment, and risk mitigation – and work to send data removal requests to as many data brokers as possible.

As we mentioned previously, data privacy in 2024 is less about opting in – data brokers won’t care whether you opt in or not – but taking the time to actively opt out. The best data removal companies can offer a value of $0.04 per data broker, and with a wide range of brokers on their systems, this is probably the most effective and efficient way to deal with the problem. 

You might be wondering at this point whether it’s worth using these data removal tools. It’s important to note, in this case, that the implications of data brokers go far beyond the problematic nature of how they harness your data. This is a question of your safety. Because data brokers sell their data to the highest bidder, your data is being kept with business entities that you don’t know, and cannot trust to protect it. 

Even if these companies are using your data in a harmless way, they are still a target for cybercriminals, and if they don’t have the correct cybersecurity in place, your data can easily be stolen and used for phishing attacks, social engineering, or other forms of fraud. 

When it comes to fraud, specifically, if cybercriminals have access to extensive personal data – including your name, address, and financial information – they can do whatever they want with it to try and make a profit, with one of the most common uses including identity theft – resulting in fraudulent credit card applications, loans, and other financial activities. This alone should be a huge cause for concern, especially considering the growing world of tech, and the ease at which some criminals can attack even a protected system.

Conclusion

As we mentioned previously, more and more people are becoming aware of the data privacy problem, not just in the US, but around the world. It’s important, however, to not only be aware of the issues we face, but to put in all the necessary steps to protect yourself. 

Whether this is through utilising data removal tools, blocking certain websites, or lessening the amount of information you readily give away, it’s time for you to do something to stop data brokers taking advantage of your digital footprint, and put yourself in the best position possible to stay safe and secure online.