Privacy for survivors of domestic violence and stalking
If someone who has harmed you could find your address online, removing listings can help, but it is slow and it is not a safety plan. Start with a trained advocate. In the US, the National Domestic Violence Hotline is free, confidential and open 24 hours a day at 1-800-799-7233. Use a device the other person cannot access. UltoPulto is not an emergency service.
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General information, not legal advice. This page has not yet been reviewed by a lawyer; check the linked primary sources before relying on it.
Key takeaways
- Talk to an advocate first. The Hotline: call 1-800-799-7233, text START to 88788, or chat at thehotline.org.
- A phone, computer or account may be monitored. Use a safer device for anything to do with your safety.
- Sudden changes, such as removing a tracking app, can alert the other person. Plan them with an advocate.
- Removing data broker listings can take weeks or months, and listings can come back.
What is the problem?
If you are in immediate danger, call your local emergency number. The Hotline notes that internet use can be monitored and is impossible to erase completely. If that worries you, call 1-800-799-7233 from a phone the other person cannot access.
People-search sites and data brokers can make personal information, including where you live, easy to look up. NNEDV's Safety Net project describes removing information from data brokers as mostly a preventative step to increase privacy.
It is a slow step, and it does not replace a safety plan made with an advocate.
How does it happen?
- Data broker listings. Safety Net notes that removing a listing does not delete the original records the broker drew on, and that your information may eventually reappear.
- Monitored devices and accounts. Safety Net lists ways an abusive person may misuse technology: tracking location, monitoring a device remotely, getting into online accounts.
- Records that ask for an address. Many US states run Address Confidentiality Programs so that survivors do not have to give out their home address.
What laws may apply?
- Address Confidentiality Programs. These state programs serve victims of domestic violence, sexual violence and stalking. California's Safe at Home, for example, offers a substitute mailing address that state, county and city agencies accept in place of a home address, and describes itself as one part of an overall safety plan. Safety Net links to a list of state programs.
- Deletion rights. Depending on where you live, privacy law may let you tell data brokers to delete your information. California residents can use DROP, the state's free platform. Brokers must check it at least every 45 days, and the state says it could take up to 90 days to see a status update.
- Stalking, harassment and protective orders. These laws differ by state. An advocate can explain what may apply to you.
What you can do yourself
These steps are free and do not need UltoPulto.
- Contact a trained advocate. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is free, confidential and open 24 hours a day: call 1-800-799-7233, text START to 88788, or chat at thehotline.org. Advocates can help you make a personal safety plan.
- Use a safer device for these contacts if yours might be monitored, such as a friend's phone or a library computer.
- Before you change settings or remove an app you think is tracking you, talk to an advocate. The FTC warns that such steps can tip the other person off, and Safety Net notes that some abusive people escalate when they lose access.
- Read NNEDV Safety Net's technology safety plan.
- Ask an advocate about your state's Address Confidentiality Program.
- Keep a record of incidents. Safety Net notes that documentation helps show a pattern.
- When it is safe, search for your own name and opt out of people-search sites, starting with the ones that appear most prominently. Check again every three to six months.
What UltoPulto can do
- Run an Exposure Scan that checks people-search sites for listings about you. Details stay hidden until you confirm a code sent to your email.
- Send removal and suppression requests to people-search sites and data brokers under the law that applies where you live.
- Check sources again after a request, to confirm removal and to catch re-listing.
- Real delivery of requests: a request is sent only once our team has verified the recipient's privacy contact. Until then it stays a draft.
What UltoPulto cannot do
- UltoPulto is not an emergency service. We do not provide safety planning, advocacy or legal advice.
- We cannot remove listings quickly. Requests can take weeks or months, a company may refuse, and a listing may reappear.
- We cannot remove court, property or other government records at their source, and we cannot enrol you in an Address Confidentiality Program.
- We cannot tell whether a device or account is being monitored. We contact you by email, so use an account the other person cannot open.
- We cannot guarantee that an address will stay hidden.
Sources
- 1National Domestic Violence HotlineNational Domestic Violence Hotline
- 2Technology Safety PlanNNEDV Safety Net Project
- 3Data Brokers: What They Are and What You Can Do About ThemNNEDV Safety Net Project
- 4Address Confidentiality ProgramsNNEDV Safety Net Project
- 5Stalkerware: What To KnowFederal Trade Commission, Consumer Advice
- 6Safe at HomeCalifornia Secretary of State
- 7Delete Request and Opt-out Platform (DROP)California Privacy Protection Agency
Questions
How long does it take to get my address off people-search sites?
Weeks to months. California says it could take up to 90 days to see a status update in DROP, and listings may reappear. Do not wait for removals before making a safety plan.
Is it safe to remove a tracking app from my phone?
Not always. It can tip the other person off, and some abusive people escalate when they lose access. Talk to an advocate first, from a different device.
Will removing my listings stop someone from finding me?
It makes finding you harder, not impossible. Safety Net says complete removal is difficult, if not impossible, and the original records remain.
Can UltoPulto help in an emergency?
No. Call your local emergency number. For support and safety planning in the US, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.