What Are Data Brokers – And What Is Your Data Worth？ [Infographic]

Have you ever received a targeted advertisement that seemed almost too relevant to your interests or circumstances? While you might attribute this to coincidence, the likelihood is that the business accessed your information through a data broker. If you’re unfamiliar with data brokers, they are part of a multi-billion-dollar industry that collects consumer data and sells it to other companies, predominantly for marketing purposes. But just what kind of insights do they possess about you, and how much value do they derive from your personal details? Explore our infographic for an in-depth look.Data brokers are essentially entities that gather information from public records, online behavior, and purchasing history, then resell it to other businesses for marketing initiatives. The more information they have on consumers, the more effectively they can tailor their advertisements. Today, there are over 4,000 data brokering companies globally, with Acxiom, one of the largest, boasting 23,000 servers dedicated to collecting and analyzing consumer data, affecting 500 million individuals worldwide, and capturing up to 3,000 data points per person.These companies source their information from over 1,400 “leading brands,” which sell data gleaned from loyalty cards and other sources to brokers. If you’ve ever enrolled in a loyalty program or store credit card, your data might have been sold to a broker, potentially ending up in various databases. For instance, signing up for a pet store loyalty card could lead your information to be sold to companies targeting pet owners. Despite being a relatively new industry, data brokers already hold significant information on a large portion of the population, with 80% of U.S. email addresses on file with Towerdata and 38% of employed Americans’ pay stub information available on Equifax.Understanding the financial value of your personal information to data brokers is crucial. On average, an email address is worth $89 to a brand over time, and the data brokering industry is a $200 billion market with no signs of slowing down. These companies typically sell information in the form of contact lists categorized by interests and characteristics. However, some listings may be more controversial, such as those containing sensitive health information.While consumers don’t reap as much from their personal data as brokers do, they are not entirely without power. Many brokers offer consumers the option to opt-out for free, and for those who value privacy, services like reputation.com can keep your data out of databases for a fee. Alternatively, if you’re willing to monetize your data, platforms like Datacoup have previously offered payments for access to social media and transaction data.For those concerned about data collection, it’s helpful to know that some brokers provide consumer reports, allowing you to view and correct the data they have on you. Contacting specific data brokers to opt-out of data collection is also an option. Here’s a list of some of the biggest data brokers you can reach out to for this purpose:

411.info – Full opt-out

Acxiom – Partial opt-out

CoreLogic – Full opt-out

DataLogix – Full opt-out

eBureau – Full opt-out

Epsilon – Full opt-out

FICO – Partial opt-out

Harte Hanks – Full opt-out

infoUSA – Full opt-out

Instant Checkmate – Full opt-out

Intelius – Full opt-out

LexisNexis – Full opt-out

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