Privacy Expert Urges Policy Overhaul to Combat Data Brokers’ Practices

Privacy expert Yael Grauer, known for creating the Big Ass Data Broker Opt-Out List (BADBOOL), has a message for those frustrated with the endless cycle of removing personal data from brokers’ databases: push lawmakers to implement meaningful policy reforms. Speaking at the ShmooCon security conference, Grauer likened the process of opting out to an unwinnable game of Whac-A-Mole, where users must repeatedly fend off new threats to their data privacy. 

Grauer’s BADBOOL guide has served as a resource since 2017, offering opt-out instructions for numerous data brokers. These entities sell personal information to advertisers, insurers, law enforcement, and even federal agencies. Despite such efforts, the sheer number of brokers and their data sources makes it nearly impossible to achieve a permanent opt-out.

Commercial data-removal services like DeleteMe offer to simplify this task, but Grauer’s research for Consumer Reports found them less effective than advertised. 

The study, released in August, gave its highest ratings to Optery and EasyOptOuts, but even these platforms left gaps. “None of these services cover everything,” Grauer warned, emphasizing that even privacy experts struggle to protect their data.

Grauer stressed the need for systemic solutions, pointing to state-led initiatives like California’s Delete Act. This legislation aims to create a universal opt-out system through a state-run data broker regi

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