Published November 5, 2024 
6 min read
PeopleFinders opt-out guide: simple steps to remove your data in just 10 minutes [2024]
| Removal difficulty: | Low |
| Profile is removed within: | 9 days |
| Manual submission: | around 10 min |
| Removal requirements: | email, CAPTCHA |
What is PeopleFinders.com?
Peoplefinders.com is a data broker that posts online all kinds of personal information including phone numbers, property history, relatives, work history, and criminal records. The opt-out process requires you to fill out an opt-out form on their website. According to their customer service, the processing of removal requests takes around 3 days. In Onerep’s experience, the removal may take longer to complete.
How to opt out of PeopleFinders
In short:
- Navigate to PeopleFinders’ opt-out page peoplefinders.com/opt-out
- Click “Next” under Public Records Removal
- Submit your name and email
- Click on the verification link sent to the provided email
- Complete the opt-out form with your data and submit your request
How do I opt out of PeopleFinders manually?
Step 1: Open PeopleFinders’ website
To start the removal process, navigate to PeopleFinders.com.
Step 2: Click on “Do Not Sell My Personal Information”
Scroll the homepage all the way down and click on the “Do Not Sell My Personal Information” link.
Step 3: Submit your full name and email
Scroll the appearing page down, then enter your full name and a valid email address, tick the confirmation box, solve the CAPTCHA, and click “Send Request.”
Step 4: Confirm your email address
Find a verification email from PeopleFinders customer service in your inbox, open it, and click the “Click here to fill out the record removal form” button.
Step 5: Complete the opt-out form and submit it
Fill out the appearing form with your personal details. Note that only the fields marked with an asterisk are obligatory. Then tick the agreements box, complete the CAPTCHA, and click “Submit.”
Your opt-out request has been submitted. You should see an on-screen confirmation above the form. Another confirmation should arrive via email shortly.
Note that removing your profile from people-search sites does not equal immediate removal from Google and other search engines. The links to your removed profiles can remain visible in Google search results for about two weeks after they have been deleted from a data broker site as it takes time for Google to update its results. You can speed things up by using Google’s outdated content removal tool.
Opt out of PeopleFinders via phone call
An alternative way to opt out of PeopleFinders is to contact their customer service at (800) 718-8997 Monday to Friday 7 am – 6 pm PST, and Saturday – Sunday 7 am – 3:30 pm PST.
Have your personal information at hand, including your full name, current and past addresses, DOB, and other details needed to locate your record correctly. Tell the customer representative that you wish to have your record removed. Note that this opt-out method is verbal, therefore check back with PeopleFinders in a couple of days.
Opt out of PeopleFinders via mail
PeopleFinders does not accept opt-out requests via mail or fax. To remove your record you should either use the opt-out page on their website or call them directly at (800) 718-8997.
Your data is still exposed on other brokers
Although you have completed the PeopleFinders opt-out, there are many other people-search sites exposing your data. While removing yourself from PeopleFinders takes you in the right direction, it isn’t enough to keep your data private.
We recommend that you do these five first:
- How to remove yourself from MyLife.com
- How to remove yourself from FastPeopleSearch.com
- How to remove yourself from Spokeo.com
- How to remove yourself from SmartBackgroundChecks.com
- How to remove yourself from Truthfinder.com
Go through this list and send opt-out requests manually to each data broker, or subscribe to Onerep to remove records automatically from 212 sites with just a few clicks.
Why opt out of PeopleFinders
We recommend you opt out of PeopleFinders first-hand as your data’s visibility is at its highest on this site, compromising your online privacy:
- Site visits: PeopleFinders gets around 6.5 mln. visits each month. (1)
- Massive database: PeopleFinders stands out for its massive database and provides access to more than 6,000 data sources.
- Information exposed:
- PeopleFinders shares names, aliases, age, locations, relatives, and jobs for free.
- A paid report discloses date of birth, current workplace, and position, employment history, education, contact data, address history, online presence (social media profiles, blogs, business profiles), more info about relatives, relationships, property records, liens, evictions, criminal records, traffic violations, and other personal details.
- Exposure on Google: Google has already indexed over 350k PeopleFinders pages making your data easier to find through its search. (2)
Sources:
1 – Silmilarweb
2 – Google
Who sees your data on PeopleFinders
| Demographic group | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Male | 44.47% |
| Female | 55.53% |
| 18–24 years old | 8.47% |
| 25–34 years old | 16.85% |
| 35–44 years old | 16.89% |
| 45–54 years old | 20.08% |
| 55–64 years old | 21.50% |
| 65+ years old | 14.41% |
PeopleFinders quick links
About PeopleFinders
- Founded: 1999
- Headquarters: Sacramento, California, United States
- Number of employees: 51 – 200
- Annual revenue: $15M – $25M
- Website URL: peoplefinders.com
- Phone number: (800) 718-8997
FAQ
How do I remove information from PeopleFinders?
To remove your personal information from PeopleFinders, open their opt-out page first (peoplefinders.com/opt-out). Submit your name and email address. You will receive a confirmation email - open it and click on the confirmation link. Finally, fill out the appearing form with your data and submit your request.
How does PeopleFinders work?
PeopleFinders lets you find and research people, phone numbers, and addresses by providing name, phone number, email, and home address lookup services. Like most data brokers, PeopleFinders finds personal information in public records and various publicly accessible sources, and compiles the discovered data into comprehensive reports. You can access some details for free, but a detailed profile is behind a paywall.
What does PeopleFinders cost?
Peoplefinders provides various membership options: $24.95 for a standard membership and $29.95 for a Premium one. A single report costs between $1 to $1.95. If you’re looking for more in-depth information, be ready to pay $39.95 for a background check.
How do I contact PeopleFinders?
PeopleFinders customer service is available Monday to Friday between 7am and 6pm PST and on Saturdays - Sundays between 7am to 3:30pm PST by phone at (800) 718-8997. Alternatively, you can leave a request via the contact form on their site peoplefinders.com/contact.
How do I cancel a PeopleFinders account?
Canceling a PeopleFinders account is pretty easy. Many people-search sites require you to contact customer care to cancel a subscription, but PeopleFinders allows you to cancel your own subscription by logging into your account with a registered email and password. Simply click on the "I would like to cancel my membership" link in the "My Home" section and follow the directions. You can also contact customer care directly to cancel. Make sure to do this in advance of your subscription renewal date.
How accurate is PeopleFinders?
PeopleFinders is one of the biggest and most popular data broker sites on the market, owning and constantly toping up one of the largest databases in the US. Like other people-finder sites, they obtain billions of current and historical records from a wide variety of sources. While they claim to offer accurate people search services, they don't really verify or check for accuracy the information that comes from those sources, so they might pull up incorrect or outdated details. The company does offer a refund on a case-by-case bases.
Dimitri is a tech entrepreneur and CEO at Onerep. He is keen on sharing his expertise in cybersecurity and privacy matters and is regularly published on various platforms.