Opt-out request letter (data broker template)

When to use this template

Use this letter when a broker's online opt-out form fails or doesn't exist, or when you want a dated, written record of your request before escalating. The letter creates the paper trail that supports a complaint to your state attorney general or — for NJ-covered persons — a Daniel's Law civil action. (Daniel's Law is the NJ statute that lets covered officers, judges, and prosecutors sue brokers that fail to remove their home address inside ten business days.)

For straightforward opt-outs across the major brokers, the online forms are faster. Use the letter when you've already tried the online flow and the broker isn't responding, or when the broker doesn't publish a self-serve opt-out path at all.

What's in the letter

The template includes:

1. Your full name and any prior names tied to the listing.
2. The specific URL of the broker record you want removed (so they can't claim ambiguity).
3. A one-sentence citation to the applicable state law where one exists — Daniel's Law (NJ), the federal Lieu Act for federal judges, or the relevant state public-records confidentiality statute.
4. A demand for removal within ten business days (matches the Daniel's Law clock; reasonable elsewhere).
5. A note that continued non-compliance will trigger a complaint to your state AG and, where applicable, a civil action.
6. Your contact information — usually a dedicated email address you check, not your work email.

The PDF version includes signature and date lines suitable for mailing.

How to send it

Two paths:

• Email — fastest, no postage. Send to the broker's published privacy contact. Set up a read receipt if your email client supports it. Save the sent message and any reply.
• Certified mail — slower but creates a paper-trail receipt the broker can't dispute. Mail to the broker's registered agent — pull the address from their state-of-incorporation business records, not their website (some publish a fake address).

Most national brokers respond to email. The handful that don't tend to respond to certified mail because the receipt creates dispute-proof evidence.

What to expect back

Honest reality:

• Major brokers (Spokeo, Whitepages, BeenVerified, the PeopleConnect chain) respond within 7-10 business days, usually with confirmation and a removal timeline.
• Mid-tier brokers respond inconsistently. Some inside a week, some inside a month, some never.
• Smaller brokers and offshore-hosted brokers often never respond. The non-response itself is what supports the AG complaint or, for NJ-covered persons, the §47:1B civil action.

Plan on a follow-up demand at 14 days for any broker that hasn't responded, and an escalation at 30 days.

The letter

Copy this into your email client or word processor. Replace every bracketed field with your specifics, delete the optional statutory paragraph if it doesn't apply to you, and send. Keep a dated copy.

[YOUR FULL NAME]
[YOUR PRIOR NAMES, IF ANY]
[YOUR CONTACT EMAIL]
[DATE]

To: Privacy / Data Removal Department
[BROKER COMPANY LEGAL NAME]
[BROKER PRIVACY EMAIL OR REGISTERED-AGENT MAILING ADDRESS]

Re: Removal of personal information — [URL OF BROKER LISTING]

This is a written request to remove the listing identified by the URL
above. The listing displays my personal information, including:

  - [HOME ADDRESS — current and prior]
  - [PHONE NUMBER(S)]
  - [DATE OF BIRTH]
  - [NAMES OF FAMILY MEMBERS]
  - [ANY OTHER FIELDS THE LISTING SHOWS]

Please remove the entire record, not just individual fields, and confirm
removal in writing to the email address above within ten (10) business
days of receipt of this letter.

[OPTIONAL — INCLUDE ONE OR MORE WHERE APPLICABLE]

This request is made pursuant to [CITE THE STATUTE THAT APPLIES TO YOU
— for example: California Civil Code §1798.140 (CCPA); Florida Statutes
§119.071 (LE / first-responder home-address exemption); Texas Government
Code §552.117; New York Public Officers Law §89(7); your state's
public-records confidentiality statute]. As a [FIRST RESPONDER / ACTIVE
OR RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER / JUDGE / PROSECUTOR / PUBLIC
EMPLOYEE / PRIVATE RESIDENT], my home address and personal contact
information are protected from public disclosure under that statute,
and your continued publication is inconsistent with it.

If you have not removed the listing and confirmed removal in writing
within ten business days, I will file a complaint with the [STATE]
Office of the Attorney General and, where applicable, pursue civil
remedies under the law cited above.

I am happy to provide identity verification through a non-public channel
if you require it. Do not request a copy of my driver's license or other
sensitive ID document by email — propose an alternate verification
method consistent with reasonable data-minimization practice.

Sincerely,



[SIGNATURE]
[YOUR PRINTED FULL NAME]
[DATE]

For NJ-covered persons, send the Daniel's Law demand letter alongside or instead of this generic letter — it triggers the statutory ten-day clock and the right to sue. If a broker has now ignored two of these letters, escalate with the state AG complaint.