True People Search opt out: how I removed my data (and you can too)

The amount of personally identifiable information (PII) available about us online is truly scary. While site breaches and data leaks have become far too common and are primarily responsible for this, data brokers like True People Search are also to blame.

These sites gather, compile, and sell your PII without your consent. They crawl public records and even take advantage of the mentioned data breaches to find all kinds of information on you. In most cases, that includes names, addresses, emails, property records, and even court filings.

Fortunately, it’s possible to opt out of True People Search, and the Cybernews research team and I dug into the matter to find the best way to do so. In this guide, I’ll go over our findings, discuss why you might want to do it, and show you how.

What is True People Search?

As its name suggests, TruePeopleSearch.com is an online search engine that lets users look up all kinds of personal information on individuals in the US. It puts names, phone numbers, addresses, emails, and even data about your relatives just a quick search away.

Despite being a free site that doesn’t even require registration, True People Search is terrifyingly accurate and provides detailed information. It scours the web, including public records, and then compiles everything it finds on a particular individual, putting it all in one easily accessible place.

If that wasn’t scary enough, True People Search does so without your consent. After all, everything the site finds on you is publicly available, so it doesn’t need your approval before placing all this data in one location. As such, it’s also entirely legal.

Luckily, the website also allows you to remove your personal information and, in some cases, prevent its web crawlers from indexing it again.

How to opt out of True People Search

There are two ways to opt out of True People Search: automatic and manual. The former involves using Incogni, a specialized paid service that automates the process and also covers other data brokers. Meanwhile, the manual approach is free, but it also requires much more effort on your end.

How to remove your data automatically

If you don’t mind subscribing, which comes with the perks of automated data removal across the internet and continuous monitoring, Incogni makes a lot of sense. The specialized service also simplifies the process, making it quite straightforward to opt out of True People Search.

When I tried Incogni to remove my own data from the web, I was pleasantly surprised by how effortless it all was. Incogni handled almost everything for me, and all it took was a few clicks to set it all up.

Here’s how you, too, can do it:

1. Create an Incogni account. Visit Incogni.com and pick a plan that fits your needs. Then, enter the required details to complete the registration.
2. Authorize Incogni. Before Incogni can deal with the True People Search opt-out and remove personal information, you’ll need to grant it the legal right to act on your behalf. This involves signing an online authorization form that allows Incogni to contact TruePeopleSearch.com and other data brokers in your name.
3. Monitor the operation. Once you’ve signed the form, Incogni will start sending opt-out requests for you. You’ll also be able to monitor the process within Incogni’s dashboard. This involves seeing which data brokers have received Incogni’s request and which have already removed your data.

The main appeal of choosing automatic removal lies in the fact that Incogni keeps monitoring the internet after you’ve dealt with certain data brokers. It constantly checks whether your PII has resurfaced elsewhere and automatically sends out additional data removal requests.

Remove your data with Incogni

How to remove your data manually

The manual method for removing your PII from TruePeopleSearch.com is a bit more challenging. But if that’s how you want to do it, the steps below will show what it takes:

1. Locate the removal page. Head to True People Search, scroll down to the bottom of the homepage, and tap the Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information link.
2. Complete the opt-out form. From there, carefully read the True People Search opt-out instructions and tap the link to the form. You’ll then need to enter your email address and go through several CAPTCHA verifications.
3. Find and remove your records. Enter your full name into the search section and review all the results it returns. Not all of them might hold information that matches yours, but if there’s at least one thing that fits, the record is worth removing. Keep in mind that you’ll have to do this one record at a time.
4. Confirm the removal. Once you’ve found a particular result, tap the Remove This Record button below. The True People Search site will then email you the removal request, which you’ll have 24 hours to confirm.
5. Wait for confirmation. After confirming the request via email, record removal can take up to 72 hours. You can, of course, do another search to check whether your data has been deleted.

Alternative True People Search opt-out methods

When you take into account that TruePeopleSearch.com is only one service in a sea of data brokers, it becomes clear how ineffective the manual method really is. Not only would you have to deal with the problem one record at a time, but you'd also have to send dozens of manual data removal requests to the many different services.

That’s precisely where the power of Incogni lies. After all, it doesn’t just target True People Search, but goes after every single data broker that might have your PII.

When I tried it, there was a night-and-day difference between its automatic process and me manually sending requests to multiple services. I could complete within minutes what used to take me hours and require endless form filling. Best of all, I didn’t have to worry about making a typo or missing something.

Reasons to remove your personal information from True People Search

Whether you’re a public figure or merely someone who appreciates their privacy, removing your PII from TruePeopleSearch.com and similar sites has several benefits. Here are just a few reasons why you might want to do it:

• Avoid doxxing or stalking. During my investigation, I came across a case of a person whose stalker admitted to finding their address on True People Search. By learning how to remove yourself from the broker using our opt-out guide, you decrease the chances of this happening to you.
• Protect your identity from scammers. Bad actors regularly use your PII from sites like TruePeopleSearch.com. They can then stitch it together with other elements to impersonate you, or worse, access your financial accounts. Opting out makes identity theft much more challenging for scammers.
• Reduce spam calls and junk mail. Most robocalls and spam emails start with marketers buying your information from data brokers. Thus, removing yourself from such sites can help reduce spam.
• Safeguard your family’s privacy. A coworker’s search not only revealed that TruePeopleSearch.com had their residential address and even satellite view of it, but it also included information on known relatives. At that point, opting out doesn’t just reduce the chance of identity theft, but protects your family, as well.

Conclusion

As if the internet wasn’t already scary enough due to constant tracking and data breaches, sites like TruePeopleSearch.com make it even worse. They collect your PII without consent and display it in an easily accessible place, making you a prime target for scammers and even stalkers.

Whether you're worried about online safety, want to protect your family’s privacy, or are just fed up with having your data out there, opting out of True People Search is a must. Cybernews researchers and I dug into it, and we evaluated both manual and automated data removal.

Our investigation suggests that Incogni is the better way to go, and for more than one reason. Not only does it simplify the process, but it also works with other data brokers and continues to monitor the internet for your information resurfacing after the initial requests are sent.

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