Zenith

1. Go to myaccount.google.com/data-and-privacy
2. Download via Google Takeout first, then delete activity: My Activity → Delete → All time
3. Turn off Web & App Activity, Location History, YouTube History
4. Ad settings: Ads Personalization → turn off

1. Settings → Your Facebook Information → Download Your Information
2. Off-Facebook Activity → Clear History → Manage Future Activity → turn off
3. Ad preferences → Ad Topics → remove all; turn off "data from partners"
4. Consider full deletion at facebook.com/help/delete_account

1. Request your data at privacy.apple.com
2. Settings → Privacy & Security → Apple Advertising → turn off personalized ads
3. Settings → Privacy → Analytics & Improvements → turn off all

1. Visit account.microsoft.com/privacy
2. Clear browsing history, search history, location activity
3. Turn off personalized ads and activity tracking

Each has a "Download your data" option in Settings. LinkedIn: Settings → Data Privacy → Get a copy of your data. X/Twitter: Settings → Your Account → Download an archive. TikTok: Settings → Privacy → Personalization & Data → turn off all.

Even as a non-California resident you can use CCPA requests on most major companies — many honor them nationally. Key rights: right to know what's collected, right to delete, right to opt out of sale.

1. Look for "Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information" in every website footer
2. Submit deletion + opt-out requests to each company's privacy portal
3. Use globalprivacycontrol.org — a browser signal that automates this on every site

A browser/extension setting that automatically sends a "Do Not Sell" signal to every website you visit. Legally recognized under CCPA. Install the GPC extension or use Brave/Firefox with it built in. Takes 2 minutes, runs forever.

1. optout.aboutads.info — opt out of 100+ ad networks at once (DAA)
2. optout.networkadvertising.org — NAI opt-out tool
3. These opt you out of targeted ads, but data collection may still occur
4. Must redo after clearing cookies — use GPC instead for persistence

Use unroll.me or clean.email to bulk-unsubscribe. Use SimpleLogin or Apple Hide My Email to generate aliases — never give out your real address going forward.

Data brokers aggregate your name, address history, relatives, income range, political affiliation, health indicators, and shopping behavior — then sell it to anyone who pays. You never signed up with them. Top offenders: Acxiom, LexisNexis, Spokeo, Whitepages, BeenVerified, Intelius, PeopleFinder, MyLife, Radaris, and ~200 others.

1. Search your name on each broker site and find your listing
2. Submit opt-out/removal request — each has its own process
3. Verify removal — many re-add you within months, requiring repeat requests
4. Expect 50–100+ hours of work to cover all major brokers

Manually remove yourself from the top 10 most-searched brokers: Spokeo, Whitepages, BeenVerified, Intelius, MyLife, Radaris, PeopleFinder, TruthFinder, FastPeopleSearch, and USPhoneBook. Takes ~2 hours and covers your most dangerous exposures.

1. Settings → Privacy & Security → Tracking → turn off "Allow Apps to Request to Track"
2. Deny tracking for all existing apps in the same menu

1. Settings → Privacy & Security → Location Services → set most apps to "Never" or "While Using"
2. Review Contacts, Microphone, Camera — revoke anything you don't actively need
3. Settings → Privacy & Security → Safety Check → audit who has access to your data

1. Settings → Safari → Prevent Cross-Site Tracking → ON
2. Settings → Safari → Hide IP Address → "From Trackers and Websites"
3. Settings → Safari → Advanced → Privacy Preserving Ad Measurement → OFF

1. Settings → Privacy → Ads → Delete Advertising ID (Android 12+)
2. Settings → Privacy → Permission Manager → audit Camera, Microphone, Location per app
3. Settings → Privacy → Activity Controls → turn off Web & App Activity, Location History

Chrome sends significant telemetry to Google. Firefox or Brave are the top privacy alternatives without sacrificing usability.

Firefox extensions: uBlock Origin, Privacy Badger, Facebook Container, Cookie AutoDelete, GPC extension from globalprivacycontrol.org.

1. Set default search engine to DuckDuckGo or Brave Search — no profile building
2. Turn on HTTPS-Only mode
3. Set to clear cookies on close, or use Cookie AutoDelete
4. Disable "Help improve browser" and telemetry options

Hides traffic from your ISP and masks your IP — useful on public WiFi. Use Mullvad (no accounts, accepts cash) or ProtonVPN (audited). Avoid free VPNs — they often sell your data.

Your ISP logs every domain you visit. Switch to 1.1.1.1 (Cloudflare) or 9.9.9.9 (Quad9) — faster and no query logs sold. Quad9 also blocks known malicious domains.

1. Switch to ProtonMail or Tutanota for sensitive communications — end-to-end encrypted
2. Use SimpleLogin or Apple Hide My Email for aliases — never share your real address
3. In Gmail: Settings → turn off "smart features" and "personalization"