Who’s selling your digital data? California gives you tools to protect your online privacy

(CalMatters) - The most recent changes to California’s data broker registry — which took effect in January — require brokers to disclose whether they sell data about kids, pregnant people, or anyone’s geolocation data. But relatively soon — at the speed state governments operate — consumers should be able to delete data collected about them.  Right now, consumers must go to hundreds of data brokers one at a time if they want them to delete their data. 

Last fall, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the Delete Act giving consumers a way to delete data from all registered brokers by using a single tool or website. Under the law — authored by state Sen. Josh Becker, a Democrat from Menlo Park — the state’s privacy agency must launch a website by 2026 that allows Californinans to delete their data in 30 seconds or less. The Delete Act doubles the cost if data brokers fail to register to $200 a day as well as costs associated with action brought by the state attorney general. By 2028, audits must verify that data brokers are complying with the Delete Act.

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