If you live in the US, you can now measure your online data exposure for free.
ExpressVPN, one of the best VPN providers on the market, recently launched a data scanner tool – completely free of charge.
Knowing which personal details have been exposed and, most importantly, who holds them is the first step to regaining control over your digital privacy. Even better, you won't even need to spend a penny to find out. Keep reading as I walk you through everything you need to know.
The dark side of data exposure
Every time you sign up for a new online service, use a mobile app, or access a website, you leave behind a trail of personal data.
Service providers collect this data and often sell it online to third parties without your consent. Recent research conducted by Surfshark, for example, found that 80% of the most popular fitness apps are selling your privacy by sharing users' tracked data with third parties.
Data brokers mostly collect this data – such as your date of birth, gender, home address, and phone number – to create a detailed profile about your digital persona that they can use to serve you with targeted ads.
Cybercriminals can also get hold of these sensitive details, leaving you vulnerable to spam, online scams, and even identity theft.
The data broker industry is pretty unregulated in the US due to a lack of federal data protection laws like those in place in Europe or some US States like California, Virginia, and Colorado.
People-search sites are common in the US, too, allowing virtually anyone to look up information about individuals, including names, email addresses, social media profiles, and sometimes even financial or employment information.
How to use ExpressVPN's data exposure scan
Using ExpressVPN's data exposure scan couldn't be simpler. All you need to do is head to the ExpressVPN website and enter your personal information.
On its side, the VPN provider promises to keep your data safe per its privacy policy.
As mentioned earlier, there's no need for you to open an account or enter any payment details. Living in the US is the only requirement for using it.
Once you have estimated your online data exposure level, you have a few options to take back control over your privacy.
You could ask for your personal information to be taken down from these sites yourself. Beware, though, this may be a very time-consuming and complex process.
Another option is signing up for a data removal service that will handle this for you by automating data removal requests.
If that's something you'd like to explore, I recommend subscribing to ExpressVPN's two-year plan, as it now includes an Identity Defender Suite alongside its tried and tested virtual private network (VPN) tool, starting from the equivalent of $4.99 a month. Beyond the data removal service, you'll also benefit from the ID Theft and ID Alerts monitoring tools.
Disclaimer
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
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