Background Alert Opt Out & Data Removal Guide

How to opt out of Background Alert and remove your info?

In short:

1. Search for your listing at http://www.backgroundalert.com/optout.
2. Select your record from the search results. Click “that’s me” once you’ve found it.
3. Enter your email address and click “next.”
4. “Confirm your identity,” but don’t upload your ID.
5. Check your inbox and confirm your opt-out request.
6. Click on “confirm opt-out.”

Keep reading for the full opt-out procedure with screenshots.

We’ve written around 85 data broker opt-out guides to make manual data removal easy. Check them out!

Step-by-step Background Alert opt-out guide

Total Time: 5 minutes

1. Search for your listing at http://www.backgroundalert.com/optout

   

   Go to www.backgroundalert.com/optout. Enter your full name, select your state from the dropdown menu, and click on “search.”

2. Select your record from the search results. Click on “that’s me”

   

   Scroll through the records until you find the listing that matches your full name, age, and address history. Click on “that’s me” once you’ve found it.

3. Enter your email address and click “NEXT”

   

   Type in your email address and click “next.”

   TIP: Use a throwaway email account or masked email address to protect your privacy when dealing with data brokers. If you don’t have one yet, we reviewed disposable email services in this article.

4. “Confirm your identity”, but don’t upload your ID

   

   You’ll have to upload or send something to complete the process, but we strongly recommend against sending your ID documents to a company like this. According to Background Alert’s responses to the many complaints on the Better Business Bureau website, your request should be approved without an ID attached.

   Instead, upload any other image file or use the image below. Then click “next.”

5. Check your inbox and confirm your opt-out request

   

   Background Alert will send you a verification email to the address you provided above. Open the email and click on “confirm opt-out.”

6. Click on “Confirm Opt-out”

   

   That’s it—job done! Background Alert promises to remove your personal data within 7 days of verifying your ID, but they don’t say when they’ll verify your ID. The good news is that our records were removed immediately with no ID uploaded—suggesting that the process is automated and images aren’t checked.

7) Continue your data removal journey

Don’t stop here, though. Background Alert is just one of an estimated 4,000 data brokers operating worldwide. Hundreds of them could be profiting from your personal data right now, putting you at greater risk in the process.

Curious about which ones? Type your name into a search engine and you’ll probably see a fair few people search sites show up. These are obviously a concern, but they’re just the tip of the iceberg.

There are other data brokers that don’t make your personal data available to search engines, preferring to buy, sell, and trade it behind the scenes. Look into data brokers known to operate in your area to create a list of likely suspects.

Follow our other opt-out guides to help you on this journey or start from these 10 guides:

• NJ parcels Opt Out
• Radaris Opt Out
• Innovis Opt Out
• Public Records Now Opt Out
• Background Alert Opt Out
• Addresses.com Opt Out
• AnyWho Opt Out
• WhitePages Premium Opt Out
• GoLookUp Opt Out
• Delete Ancestry account data
• Zoominfo Opt Out
• Intelius Opt Out
• MyLife.com Opt Out
• Instant Checkmate Opt Out
• Spokeo Opt Out
• PeopleLooker Opt Out
• Search People Free Opt Out
• PeekYou Opt Out
• FamilyTreeNow Opt Out

You know what to do next—opt-out of each and every broker on your lists. If you don’t have the time or patience to do this but still value your privacy, try Incogni. Our automated data removal service will handle everything on your behalf.

Watch the video guide

FAQ