I try to audit my online footprint at least once a year. It takes a few hours, and it’s worth it.
The convenience tradeoff is real. I’ve had to accept some friction (and spend some money) in exchange for things I actually care about, like protecting my privacy, and possibly my family’s. It’s not a process you just do once, it’s more like checking your credit reports – you need to get in the habit of doing in regularly. The very first stop is to set Google Alerts for yourself or any other relevant search terms so you’re notified when new info pops.
Things to check:
- State/local tax rolls
- Voter records
- Data brokers (far, far easier and less time-consuming if you use an online data removal site like Incogni or DeleteMe or Aura – the trade off is, of course, money)
- Search engines – I suggest you use an AI tool to generate several different permutations of your PII to search
- AI sites – Perplexity and others will let you automate a self-search query weekly, which is great for picking up new entries
- Social media sites – search for current profiles and see where you’re mentioned or tagged
- Google Reverse Image Search – use the “Visual Match” tool and upload a pic of your face. Seems counterintuitive, but there it is.
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