When you want to regain control over the information that’s out there about you, taking steps to delete your digital footprint might be just what you need. There are so many ways that you create this digital footprint whenever you use the internet, and because you have been online for so many years, your footprint might be rather large.
Continue reading for a few tips that can help you remove much of the information that people would be able to find out about you online.
Delete Accounts with Forums and Social Media Platforms
Let’s start with forums and social media accounts. These might seem innocent enough, but they are outlets where you might have shared quite a bit of information.
If you used one or more forums, go to them to not only delete your accounts with them, but also to delete your comments so that there is no longer a trace of you on there.
And when it comes to your social media accounts, totally deleting them and taking them down can be another good way to delete your digital footprint because those pages can host a lot of information about you that you posted through the years.
Remove Your Information from People Search Sites
People search sites act as databases that you can use to search for just about anyone. They can provide you with details like a person’s address and phone number, but they can also go even farther by giving away personal details like the names of relatives, your age, and your background information. So, it’s also a great idea to remove your information from these websites when you are in the process of clearing your online footprint.
There are a lot of people search websites. One example is TruthFinder, which helps you search public records, run background checks, and more. Do a search on the site to see if your information is provided, and then find the TruthFinder opt out instructions to ensure the removal of that info.
Another popular resource is Whitepages. You’ve probably already heard of this website, which can host a lot of your personal details too. Head to the Whitepages opt out instructions to figure out how to request removal of your information.
Doing an internet search of your name might also reveal that your personal details are found on sites like Fast People Search. In that case, you’d need to go to the Fast People Search removal page to make sure they don’t showcase your details either.
Deactivate and Delete All of Your Other Online Accounts
Finally, to remove yourself as much as possible from the internet, you should consider deleting all of your online accounts. This includes all of the accounts you’ve created through the years, so take your time to ensure you don’t miss any.
Examples include accounts you’ve opened with online retailers, news sources, businesses, etc. And don’t forget about newsletters that you have subscribed to as well. Removing yourself from all of those accounts can help you limit your digital footprint as much as possible.
Finally, when you’re all done deleting the accounts you have used over the years, it’s time to delete your email accounts as well. This will further help you delete your digital footprint so that people won’t even be able to contact you online anymore.
