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Opt-Out Tuesday: How to remove your info from FamilyTreeNow
People search sites collect your information from publicly available sources and offer it to anyone interested, including thieves and scammers. There are countless sites like this. So, how do you protect your data? You need to remove it.
In this edition of my Opt-Out Tuesday series, let’s remove your data from FamilyTreeNow.
Avoid people search sites at all costs, especially if it costs you
Don’t ever pay for any people search service. Most of these sites are scammy in nature. You may think you’re paying for one report and find that you’ve been roped into recurring charges.
When you go to opt out, be careful which links you click. The buttons on these sites are often ads that lead you to another site that requests payment.
Do you have older relatives who may not know about these sites? While you’re opting out yourself, why not do the same for them? Just type in their information as you would your own, and follow our steps to completion.
PSA: There’s an easier way
Below I’ll give you the steps to remove yourself from FamlyTreeNow, but that’s just one of hundreds of such sites. If you want to knock them all out in one go, check out Incogni.
Incogni does all that hard work for you. It took me three minutes to go through the sign-up process, then they get to work removing you from 180+ sites. You don’t have to lift a finger after that initial setup. So great.
I have a special deal just for you. Right now, get 60% off an annual subscription using code KIM60.
Not very family-friendly
Tracing your genealogy was all the rage a few years ago, and business is still booming for sites like Ancestry and 23andMe. However, the rise of data breaches and loose privacy practices have hopefully made people more careful about where they share their information.
FamilyTreeNow is banking on the trend by advertising to “Research your family tree and genealogy for free!” The site boasts billions of family records, including census records from 1790-1940, birth records, death records, marriage and divorce records and military records.
You don’t want anyone using this site to learn more about you or your family.
How to delete your information from FamilyTreeNow
- Go to familytreenow.com/optout.
- Fill in your email address and complete the CAPTCHA.
- Click the Begin Opt Out Procedure button.
- Enter your information to find your profile and hit Search.
- Find your profile in the list and select View Details.
- On the next page, select the red Opt Out This Record button.
- You’ll get an email containing a link to complete your opt-out request.
- Hit the link in your email and you’ll be taken to a confirmation page.
- Give it a few days for your information to be removed.
Fill out the contact form at familytreenow.com/contact if you need more help.
Tags: 23andMe, advertising, Ancestry, breaches, family, genealogy, incogni, older relatives, opt-out, Opt-Out Tuesday, People search sites, personal information, privacy, recurring charges, scammers, thieves
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