Well this was wierd. I answered a call because I am waiting

[leftyladyfrommo]

to hear on my Covid vaccination.

It was Allstate and they had all kinds of information about me. They had name and address and phone number and that's where I hung up. I have never dealt with Allstate.

I really don't like any body and their dog being able to find out so much about my personal information.

Nothing I can do about it but I surely don't like it.

[rurallib]

1. Same here - I just got a call from a safety bathtub salesperson for the elderly

and he had all sorts of info on me that really bothered me.

I do not like this either.

[RKP5637]

2. Not surprised. I started using tools to clear my data off the Internet as much as possible.

I use this company and they are great. Over the years I've used them for many other things. It's not real cheap, but not horrible.

https://www.abine.com/

[ZonkerHarris]

13. kr

[packman]

3. Scams - somewhere, if you fall for it -

They'll ask for a credit card #, or some other way to get you to send them cash. Call them back, if you are concerned, on a number you can trust. I got a call the other day from "Amazon" about someone using our account. Called Amazon and they said to forget about it.

[multigraincracker]

4. Insurers share info.

I wanted to see about a better price and called another company. Sales man knew what I had insured and how much it cost.

[sarcasmo]

5. Had a vehicle warranty call wake me up this morning. UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ironflange]

10. I had one as well

She kept telling me my warranty was about to run out. We own two vehicles, both under two years old.

[bluestarone]

15. Same here

THEY are EVIL people!! I'm sure some fall for their LIES!! Can't believe they cannot put these bastards in jail.

[GoneOffShore]

6. I keep getting ads for Italian marmalade. Not that I mind that.

[mackdaddy]

7. Nearly everything is on the internet if you look.

Your voter registration information is public. including your birth date, address and party.
If you know the county where someone lives you can look up their entire court history. Local, State, Federal court system are all on line now.
And all of the Ancestry websites have tons of data on present and former addresses, AKA names, and probable relatives.
County registrar databases have all of your real estate data including a photo of your house and a layout drawing on line, as well as liens and loans outstanding and property values.
And I registered my small business with the SOS office and now I get a dozen bs calls a week for business loans.

And all of these are free sources. (sometimes accuracy is iffy though).

Welcome to the 21st century.

[Politicub]

8. My public library gives access to a database called ReferenceUSA to patrons.

I was surprised at how much info there was about me and my household when I searched my name.

I’m sure that’s just the tip of the iceberg. We need legislation in place that helps us control the buying and selling of our vital information. I’m not holding my breath.

[Brother Buzz]

9. Points for hanging up...

and a word of advice to everyone: Never, EVER, confirm of deny ANY information over the telephone. NOTHING.

[hydrolastic]

16. The problem is you are entirely passive

and there is a database just piling up info on you. I wish there was a way to just disappear off the internet without having to leave. In fact i would pay for that but no the information on us is too valuable to allow us to opt out. The ads are infuriating. Thanks Adjit Pai!

[RKP5637]

17. There are companies that will do that for you. Seriously, you can have a great deal of information

removed.

[Sogo]

11. If you have a land line, anyone can look in the phone book and see your

name, address, and phone number....

[leftyladyfrommo]

12. I don't have a landline and we don't get phone books

anymore. But White Pages is out there.

[Xolodno]

14. There is a lot of consumer data available from various vendors.

Shoot, I use it in some projects that I do at work. For example, we rate your insurance based on zip code...State Farm, does it by Latitude and Longitude...and we're eventually going to have the same capability.

Those devices and apps that give you a discount based on how you drive and usage, we already know the good drivers often accept it. And the bad drivers, don't. The rating gets baked in that way.

And that type of data is coming to your home in the form of smart sensors that detect water pipe leaks, smoke, etc. There is already stuff out there that does this for you, but now there is talk in the industry about just giving and installing it for every policyholder.

Hell, in one subscription database we have, we look at other agents book size to help us decide if we can compete more effectively.

And where legal, insurance companies share data. It helps in fraudulent claims, but also helps in determining if you are understating your assets, have frequent claims, etc.

If you shop for insurance online, several companies buy that data and bam...you get calls, emails, etc. from all those companies.