If a people-search site lists the wrong address or a credit report contains someone else's account, the remedy depends on the record. A people-search opt-out, a state privacy request, and a credit-report dispute are different processes.

This guide is for U.S. consumers. Federal and state rights vary, and a template cannot create a right that does not apply to your situation.

First decide: correction, deletion, or both?

Data brokers can compile public and semi-public records, including property, court, address, and other personal information. The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse overview of online information brokers describes the kinds of records that may appear in broker databases.

Use the route that matches what you found:

An old address may be accurate historical information but still be unwanted. In that case, ask for removal or suppression rather than describing it as false.

A company may operate both a people-search product and a credit-reporting product. The company name alone does not determine which rules apply. The product, purpose, and way the information is used matter.

Fast checklist for disputing or removing broker information

1. Search for your exposure. Use your name with your city and state, plus known phone numbers, email addresses, and aliases.
2. Save the exact listing. Record the profile URL, the date, the company name, and every incorrect or sensitive item.
3. Choose the correct process. Use a broker opt-out for a people-search profile and an FCRA dispute for an inaccurate covered consumer report.
4. Collect narrow evidence. Use documents that prove the specific point without disclosing unnecessary financial or identity information.
5. Submit through an official channel. Use the company's current privacy page, opt-out form, or the instructions that came with your report.
6. Complete verification carefully. Confirm an email request when required, and provide an ID only through a verified official process.
7. Track the request. Save confirmation emails, screenshots, reference numbers, and the company's stated response time.
8. Check the result. Search the same profile again after the stated timeframe and look for duplicate listings.
9. Escalate selectively. Follow up with the company, use an applicable state complaint route, or report deceptive conduct to the FTC.

Step 1: Audit what is exposed

Search several variations of your name. Include a middle initial, former name, common misspellings, city, state, phone number, and email address. Search both a general search engine and the people-search websites where a profile appears.

For each result, make a simple record containing:

• Company name and product name
• Exact profile or report URL
• Name and location shown
• Addresses, phone numbers, emails, relatives, age, property, court, or employment details displayed
• The item that is wrong, outdated, or unsafe to publish
• Date and time of the screenshot
• Whether the page offers an opt-out, correction, deletion, or appeal option

Don't rely on a search-engine preview. Open the company's actual listing only when it is safe to do so, and check the domain before entering any information. You shouldn't have to pay a third-party service just to document that a listing exists.

Look for duplicate profiles. A broker may have separate entries for a former address, a shortened name, or a similar person. Removing one record won't necessarily remove the others.

Step 2: Gather evidence without oversharing

Match the evidence to the error:

• A utility bill or government letter may help prove the correct address.
• A report page can show that an account, name, or address is attached to the wrong person.
• A court or government record may help resolve a mistaken identity claim.
• An account statement may establish a balance or account status, but redact transaction details and full account numbers.
• A driver's license may help with identity verification, but only provide it when the company's official process requires it.

Send copies rather than originals. Remove Social Security numbers, full bank account numbers, card numbers, and unrelated transactions unless the official instructions specifically require information that cannot be redacted. Never email an unredacted identity document to an address copied from an advertisement or an unverified message.

Your explanation should be specific. “This is wrong” is weaker than “The profile combines my phone number with another person's address. I have never lived at the listed address.”

Step 3: Submit a people-search removal request

For Spokeo, BeenVerified, Intelius, Acxiom, and similar services, start with the company's current official privacy or opt-out page. Forms and verification steps change, so don't assume an old blog's instructions or URL still applies.

A typical request involves:

1. Finding the exact profile that matches you.
2. Copying the profile URL or record number.
3. Selecting the available removal, opt-out, deletion, or correction option.
4. Entering only the information needed to locate and verify the record.
5. Confirming the request through email or another required step.
6. Saving the confirmation page and any reference number.

If the form separates “opt out,” “do not sell or share,” “delete,” and “correct,” select the options that actually match your goal. If you want both removal and correction, say so clearly.

A broker's removal usually affects that broker's listing. It may not erase a court, property, voter, licensing, or other public record, and another broker may later obtain similar information from the same source. Ask whether related profiles or affiliated brands require separate requests, but don't assume one company's confirmation covers an entire industry.

A practical removal and correction template

Use the company's own form when available. If it accepts email or mail requests, adapt this wording:

Subject: Request to remove or correct personal information

Name: [Full name]
State: [State]
Email used for this request: [Email]
Profile URL or record reference: [Exact URL or reference]

I request [deletion, opt-out, correction, or both] of the personal information associated with the profile or record identified above.

The information I want removed or corrected is:
[Quote or describe the specific item]

Reason:
[Explain the error, mistaken identity, outdated information, or safety concern]

Correct information, if needed:
[State the correct fact, or write “Please remove this item rather than replace it.”]

Please confirm receipt of this request and provide the result through the contact method above. I have provided only the information needed to locate and verify the record.

[Name]
[Date]

If you are making a request under a state privacy law, identify your state only when the official process asks for it or when you are certain the right applies. Don't add a California citation to a request from another state.

Step 4: Dispute an inaccurate credit report separately

Credit reports can affect borrowing costs and may also be considered for housing, employment, or insurance. A people-search opt-out will not correct an account on a credit report.

Start by obtaining your reports from AnnualCreditReport.com and identify which reporting company shows the error. The FTC's guidance on disputing credit report errors explains how to dispute information with the reporting company and how to contact the business that supplied the information.

Your dispute should identify:

• Your name and contact information
• The report date or a copy of the report page
• The account or item in dispute
• The exact field that is wrong
• Why the information is inaccurate, incomplete, or belongs to someone else
• The correction or deletion you are requesting
• Copies of relevant evidence, with sensitive information redacted where allowed

If the same error appears in reports from multiple companies, dispute it separately with each company. You may also need to dispute it directly with the furnisher, such as a lender, debt collector, or creditor. Use the mailing address or online instructions supplied by the reporting company rather than an address copied from an old article.

The FTC describes a general 30-day investigation period for a credit-report dispute, although exceptions can affect the timing. Keep proof of the submission and the response. If the information is accurate but simply negative, a dispute generally isn't a way to remove it.

Credit-report dispute template

Subject: Dispute of inaccurate information in a consumer report

Name: [Full name]
Address: [Current mailing address]
Report date: [Date]
Report reference: [Reference, if available]

I dispute the following information in my consumer report:

Company reporting the item: [Company]
Account or reference ending in: [Last four digits or reference]
Location on the report: [Page or section]

What is inaccurate:
[Describe the exact error]

Why it is inaccurate:
[Explain the facts briefly]

Requested correction:
[Correct the information or delete the item if it cannot be verified]

Enclosures:
- Copy of the report page with the item marked
- Copies of documents supporting the dispute

Please investigate this dispute and send me the result and an updated report if the information is corrected.

[Name]
[Date]

Don't use this credit-report letter as a substitute for a people-search opt-out. The two requests should be sent to the entity responsible for the specific record.

California's DROP process

California residents have a statewide route called DROP for submitting deletion requests to data brokers. The California Privacy Protection Agency's DROP instructions say that processing begins August 1, 2026.

The agency says that, beginning on that date, data brokers must begin processing DROP requests and process them at least every 45 days. Brokers may have up to 90 days to report how they handled a request, so a status page may not show a final result immediately. Save the eight-digit DROP ID shown on the confirmation page.

DROP is a privacy deletion process. It doesn't replace a dispute over an inaccurate credit report, and it doesn't guarantee that a truthful public record disappears from its original source. Follow the portal's instructions for identity verification and keep the confirmation details.

Other states may provide access, correction, deletion, or sale opt-out rights, but coverage, exceptions, and deadlines differ. There is no single voluntary opt-out deadline that applies to every U.S. people-search site. Check your state's official privacy or attorney general website and the broker's current request process before relying on a deadline.

How to handle major broker categories

The same checklist works across companies, but the correct route depends on the product:

• Acxiom: Use its current privacy choices or data-rights process for a marketing or profile record. If the information appears in a consumer report used for an FCRA-covered purpose, identify the reporting company and use the credit-report dispute process instead.
• Experian: Separate a credit-report error from a marketing or other data preference. Credit-report inaccuracies should be disputed through the reporting process described by the FTC. A separate privacy request may be needed for non-credit information.
• Spokeo: Treat the listing as a people-search profile. Locate the exact record, submit the official opt-out or removal request, complete any required confirmation, and save the profile URL.
• BeenVerified: Use the current official opt-out or privacy form for the matching profile. Check for duplicate records after the request is processed.
• Intelius: Submit the request through the company's current privacy process and retain the confirmation. Do not assume that removal from one people-search brand removes a related listing elsewhere.

These are starting points, not guarantees. Companies can change their forms, verification requirements, and response practices. A request should identify the exact profile rather than merely asking a company to “remove everything about me.”

Track deadlines and results

A spreadsheet or notes file is enough. Record:

For ordinary people-search requests, use the timeframe stated by the broker and follow up if it passes. For FCRA disputes, use the FTC's current timing guidance rather than treating a broker's voluntary promise as a legal deadline. For DROP requests, keep the 45-day processing and 90-day status information in mind.

Check the original profile again after the request. Search for your name and phone number several months later, and repeat the search after a move, name change, or new phone number. Reappearance doesn't always mean the first request failed; a broker may have received the information again from another source.

If the company ignores or denies the request

Work through these steps in order:

1. Check the confirmation. Make sure the request targeted the right profile and that you completed any email or identity verification.
2. Follow up through the official channel. Include the reference number, original submission date, and exact profile URL.
3. Ask for the reason for denial. A company may have separate processes for correction, deletion, marketing opt-out, and consumer-report disputes.
4. Use an applicable state complaint route. This is most useful when you are exercising a right under a state privacy law and the company does not follow its required process.
5. Report deceptive conduct or a scam. The FTC's contact and reporting information directs consumers to ReportFraud.gov for illegal business practices and scams. An FTC report is an enforcement tip, not a promise that the agency will remove your individual listing.
6. Escalate a serious credit-report problem separately. Keep the report, dispute, evidence, and response together if the reporting company or furnisher does not correct an inaccurate item.

If a listing creates an immediate stalking or personal-safety risk, don't wait for a broker's normal processing time. Contact local law enforcement or a qualified victim-support organization while also making the privacy request.

Should you use a paid removal service?

A paid service can save time when your information appears on many sites or returns repeatedly. It can't guarantee permanent deletion, change an accurate credit record, or make every company respond.

Before subscribing, check:

• Which sites and data categories are covered
• How often the service rescans
• Whether it provides confirmation or screenshots
• Whether family members cost extra
• The regular price after any introductory period
• Automatic renewal and cancellation steps
• How it stores identity documents and other information
• Whether it removes data from sources or only submits broker requests

DIY removal is reasonable when you have a small number of profiles and can track follow-ups. A service may be worth considering when the time cost is high, but compare its privacy practices with the information you'll have to give it. Success-rate percentages are not standardized, so don't choose a service based on an unsupported guarantee.

Start with one exact profile URL and one dated screenshot. Then file the matching opt-out or credit-report dispute, save the confirmation, and put the follow-up date on your calendar.