How do you remove personal information from Zabasearch, one of the most popular people search engines on the Web?
Many people have expressed concern on how to remove personal information from Zabasearch, a free people search engine. Zabasearch has updated their privacy information and is endeavoring to make it easier for users to get their information removed from Zabasearch’s indexes. Note: search engines and websites frequently change their policies; at the time of this writing, all of this information has been verified.
Your Zabasearch Information
Information gathered at Zabasearch is a matter of public record. They are not compiling anything on anyone that is not already out there online, in the White Pages, the Yellow Pages, or other commonly known informational databases, websites, or other online platforms.
There’s only so much you can do to keep your information private, and some things will always be a part of public record (most court records, for example, are publicly searchable). Removing your information from Zabasearch does NOT mean that this information is not still publicly available on the Web via other means (search engines, directories, etc.). Learn more about keeping your Web information private by reading How to Guard Your Web Privacy.
That being said, you can still do quite a bit to keep your information out of Zabasearch and other public information databases.Here are five things you can do to keep your information more private.
Get a P.O. Box
You can start to remove your personal information from Zabasearch by getting a P.O.Box for bills. This is one of the easiest (and cheapest) ways to get your information out of sight. Use the USPS Post Office Locator to find a post office near you.
Get an Unlisted Number
If you already have an unlisted number, it might be a good idea to change it and take VERY special care to whom you give it to.
Read Privacy Policies
Yes, they’re pretty dry, but it’s a good idea to read them. Find out if the company you aim to do some kind of business with does not intend to sell your information – you’d be surprised how many actually do. In addition, it’s wise to familiarize yourself with the policies of the services you use online and how they use your information; read How Google Tracks Your Searches for an example of this.
Try Mailing A Removal Request
You can mail written requests to informational databases formally requesting that your information be removed. However, anyone who wants to will still be able to see that information in search engine caches for a limited time, plus, this can be quite time-consuming.
The simplest way to remove your information from Zabasearch
Zabasearch provides a simple way for readers to remove their information from their database; however, it should be kept in mind that simply removing this from Zabasearch’s records does not mean that the records are not still searchable on the Web at large.
Zabasearch Email and Contact Information
It’s highly suggested that you go the written letter removal route instead of email to provide a paper trail, however, if you’d like to do both, here’s a couple of email addresses you can use for contacting someone within Zabasearch:
info@zabasearch.com
optout@zabasearch.com
According to WhoIs, Zabasearch’s registry information is as follows:
Zaba, Inc.
2828 Cochran St.
Suite 397
Simi Valley, California 93065
United States
Zabasearch – You Do Have Options
Privacy online – including the release of your personal information, records, and other data – is ultimately up to the user. For more ways to stay private on the Web, try these articles:
- Search Engines and Internet Privacy: Ever wondered what a search engine’s privacy policy looks like? Here’s a few for you the next time you’d like some light reading.
- Ten Ways To Keep Your Search History Private: Most of us have no need to hide our search history, but there’s no harm in more cautious Web surfing. Here are a few ways you can keep your searching history private.