Data Broker Registries & Deletion Rights
Short answer (≤75 words)
/data-brokers/ maps state-level data broker registration laws, opt-out mechanisms, and enforceable deletion rights. It documents which states have enacted broker registration requirements, what those registries disclose, and what legal mechanisms exist to reduce commercial data broker exposure — distinguished from public records exposure, which is covered in Exposure Systems.
What lives in this silo
- Data Broker Registries by State — which states maintain public data broker registries, what they require brokers to disclose, and how to access them
- Data Broker Registry and Deletion Mechanisms by State — full matrix of registration requirements, opt-out mechanisms, and deletion rights across all enacted state laws
- Right to Delete by State — enforceable deletion rights by state, distinguishing opt-out-only regimes from true deletion mandates
- What Is a Data Broker? — definition and how commercial data brokers differ from public-record sources
Why data broker exposure is distinct from public records exposure
Public records (court filings, business registries, property records) are created by government processes and governed by public records law. Data broker exposure is created by commercial aggregation of behavioral, transactional, and inferred data — a different legal surface with different remedies.
Reducing public records exposure requires working with the source agencies. Reducing data broker exposure requires using the opt-out and deletion mechanisms that state law has made available. The two categories require different strategies and often different timelines.
Frequently asked questions
Which states have data broker registration laws?
As of 2025, California, Vermont, Texas, and Oregon have enacted data broker registration requirements. The registry structures and opt-out mechanisms differ significantly by state — see the matrix at /data-brokers/data-broker-registry-by-state/.
What is the difference between a data broker opt-out and a right to delete?
An opt-out tells a broker to stop selling your data going forward. A right to delete requires them to purge existing records. Most state laws provide opt-out rights; fewer provide enforceable deletion rights. See /data-brokers/right-to-delete-by-state/ for the breakdown.
Do data broker deletion requests actually work?
Compliance varies. Regulated brokers subject to CCPA, Vermont, or Texas law generally honor requests. Unregistered aggregators operating outside covered jurisdictions may not. Broker opt-outs reduce exposure but do not eliminate it — new data is continuously ingested.
How does this silo relate to /exposure/?
/exposure/ frames the conceptual model (the nine verbs: visible, searchable, indexable, reusable, actionable, verified, priced, constrained, optimized). /data-brokers/ applies that framework to the commercial data broker layer specifically.
Go deeper with source-backed research
Explore methodology, datasets, and related matrices cited on this page.