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Main image: Maria Diaz/ZDNET

Fifteen years after data brokers turned personal information into a lucrative commodity, the fight against unauthorized data harvesting has spawned specialized removal services. Incogni (launched in 2021 by Surfshark) and DeleteMe (founded in 2010 by Abine Privacy) now lead this critical privacy niche, employing fundamentally different technical strategies to scrub Personally Identifiable Information (PII) from broker databases and people-search sites. With both services priced near $8–$11/month, developers and privacy engineers face a consequential choice: algorithmic scale or human-centric precision?

The Technical Showdown: Architecture Matters

Key Differentiators Incogni DeleteMe
Core Architecture API-driven automation Hybrid automation + human review
Data Broker Coverage 420+ public/private brokers 150+ high-impact sites
Custom Request Handling Premium plans only Included in all tiers
Audits/Certifications Deloitte audit (SOC 2 pending) SOC 2 certified (ISO 27001 pending)
Mobile Experience Apps in development Available now

Why Incogni Appeals to the Tech-First Crowd

  1. Automation at Scale: Incogni processes over 90 million annual removal requests using algorithms that auto-detect PII exposure patterns and submit deletion demands via APIs, forms, and emails. A Deloitte audit validates its approach: "Automation lets us handle volume while human teams verify outcomes daily," an Incogni engineer told ZDNET. This makes it ideal for developers prioritizing efficiency.

  2. Broker-Focused Purges: Targeting 420+ entities—including giants like Acxiom and Equifax—Incogni resets requests every 60-90 days, suppressing future data collection. Its dashboard provides real-time removal confirmations, though power users crave deeper analytics.

  3. Future-Proofing Against AI: Incogni’s expanding custom removal service now tackles 1,400+ domains, anticipating AI’s data-scraping threats: "LLMs don’t distinguish between brokers and other sites. Any exposed PII is weaponizable," their team warned.

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DeleteMe’s Human-Centric Edge

  1. The Privacy Advisor Advantage: While leveraging automation, DeleteMe employs specialists who manually investigate data trails. CEO Rob Shavell emphasizes quality over quantity: "Covering 150 high-risk U.S. sites where data actually surfaces matters more than inflating numbers." This hybrid model achieves a 70% success rate on custom requests—included in all plans.

  2. DIY Resources for Tech-Savvy Users: Beyond subscriptions, DeleteMe offers free U.S. exposure scans and comprehensive opt-out guides for services like Experian and WorkNumber—valuable for developers comfortable with self-service privacy management.

  3. Pioneering Automotive Privacy: As license plates emerge in broker databases, DeleteMe is developing countermeasures. "Vehicle-to-driver profiling is accelerating. Insurance firms buy this data today," Shavell noted—a critical frontier for IoT privacy.

The Road Ahead: Privacy in an AI-Era

Incogni plans mobile apps and expanded broker targeting, while DeleteMe explores dark web monitoring and identity masking. Both face escalating challenges from generative AI’s indiscriminate data ingestion. For engineers, the choice hinges on philosophy: Do you trust algorithms to handle volume, or humans to navigate complexity? As Shavell frames it, "This is about restoring fairness in data control—wherever it’s stored."

Source: ZDNET comparative analysis of Incogni and DeleteMe services, pricing, and technical architectures (September 2025)