Are data brokers endangering your retirement security?

You know, it’s pretty unsettling when you think about it. We spend our whole lives working hard and saving up for retirement. Then, one day, you find out that some company you’ve never heard of is selling your personal information to whoever wants to buy it. It’s not just alarming – it could actually put your financial security at risk.

These companies are data brokers that collect and sell people’s personal information, often without us even knowing about it. And get this – some of them might be trading info that could affect your retirement savings. Crazy, right? But don’t worry, it’s not all doom and gloom. There are things we can do to protect ourselves. I want to talk about how these data brokers operate and what steps you can take to keep your retirement plans safe.

A couple working on their finances

How data brokers are endangering your retirement security

There’s one major way in which data brokers are endangering your retirement security, and it’s right there in the name: data brokers buy, sell, trade, and otherwise spread your personal information far and wide. This endangers your retirement security in three distinct ways, each more dangerous than the last:

1) Spray ‘n’ pray campaigns

They don’t know anything about you, but they have a way to reach you. Even if a scammer knows only your phone number or email address, it’s enough for them to reach out to you. If they don’t know who you are or anything about you, they have to take the most “one-size-fits-all” approach they can manage. Their goal is to get you to respond to them or click a link that leads to a malicious website. Once they learn more about you, they can better tailor their next moves.

2) A firehose aimed in your general direction

They know what you’re like, but not who you are. Scammers can buy ready-made packages of personal information from data brokers. A set like this might include only the phone numbers of people over the age of 60, for example, while another might provide the addresses of elderly people who require live-in care and are experiencing cognitive decline. The potential for abuse is clear. They don’t have to know your name to target a dangerously effective scam at you.

3) A water pistol to the ear

In other words, something aimed right at you, and very difficult to ignore. Scammers can also buy shockingly detailed information about you, from your full name to your healthcare and financial information. These scams are the most dangerous, with the attackers knowing enough about you to breeze past many of your defenses.

Any of the above types of scams can end in what might be the ultimate fraud—identity theft—but these three are more likely to get there, and in fewer steps, than the others.

A woman working on her finances

MASSIVE DATA BREACH AT FEDERAL CREDIT UNION EXPOSES 240,000 MEMBERS

What you can do to protect your retirement security

You can reduce or avoid many of these risks by stopping data brokers from making it easier for scammers to target you and by arming yourself against the most common and effective tactics they use.

1) Invest in personal data removal services: A trusted personal information removal service can stop data brokers in their tracks from sharing your information. While no service promises to remove all your data from the internet, having a removal service is great if you want to constantly monitor and automate the process of removing your information from hundreds of sites continuously over a longer period of time.

A service like Incogni can help you remove all this personal information from the internet. It has a very clean interface and will scan 195 websites for your information and remove it and keep it removed.

Special for CyberGuy Readers (60% off): Incogni offers A 30-day money-back guarantee and then charges a special CyberGuy discount only through the links in this article of $5.99/month for one person (billed annually) or $13.19/month for your family (up to 4 people) on their annual plan and get a fully automated data removal service, including recurring removal from 190+ data brokers. You can add up to 3 emails, 3 home addresses and 3 phone numbers (U.S. citizens only) and have them removed from data-broker databases. I recommend the family plan because it works out to only $4.12 per person per month for year-round coverage. It’s an excellent service, and I highly recommend at least trying it out to see what it’s all about.

Get Incogni here

Get Incogni for your family (up to 4 people) here

2) Don’t click on links: No matter how much pressure or stress a message or phone call puts you under, stick to the golden rule of never following or clicking on links. Always go to the source of the communication via official channels from a secure device to confirm what’s happening. The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious links that install malware, potentially accessing your private information, is to have antivirus software installed on all your devices. This protection can also alert you to phishing emails and ransomware scams, keeping your personal information and digital assets safe.

One of the top solutions we recommend is Norton Antivirus Plus, which extends protection beyond just traditional virus scanning. While iPhones have strong built-in security, Norton adds an important extra layer by helping block malicious websites, phishing links, and unsafe downloads before they can cause harm. If you accidentally tap a bad link in an email, text message, or social media post, Norton helps prevent access to known dangerous sites using its continuously updated threat intelligence. If you are interested in a strong antivirus with phone customer service, we recommend Norton Antivirus Plus. This product includes:

Strong real-time protection against viruses, malware, ransomware and hacking attempts
AI-powered scam protection to help identify suspicious emails, texts and websites
Built-in password manager to securely store and manage logins
2 GB PC cloud backup to help protect important files from ransomware or hardware failure
Smart firewall and phishing protection

COVERAGE

Protects 1, 3 or 5 devices
Available for Windows, macOS, Android and iOS
Includes real-time threat protection, smart firewall and phishing protection to guard against online attacks

EXCLUSIVE CYBERGUY DEAL: 58% off (year 1)

Please note that the above product is the core antivirus product. Norton may try to upsell additional products, but we don’t recommend them. We encourage you to decline those offers.

3) Don’t give out sensitive information: If a message or email can put you under enough pressure to do something you shouldn’t (like follow a link to a phishing site), imagine what a phone call can do. Any request for personal information should raise red flags. If something seems off, hang up.

4) Verify identities before handing over money or information: Always verify who you are dealing with before providing any personal details (name, address, date of birth, SSN, financial information, etc.) or money. If someone asks for this information or claims they need to send you money, follow this rule: “Hang up, look up, and call back.” This applies to phone calls, texts, and emails. Hang up or set the message aside, find the legitimate contact information for the organization in question. Then, reach out through official channels (not social media) to confirm the request.

Related Articles:

Kurt’s key takeaways

It’s crazy to think about how much of our personal information is out there, floating around in the digital world. But here’s the thing – we’re not powerless in this situation. Sure, it can feel overwhelming, but there are steps we can take to protect ourselves and our hard-earned retirement savings. It’s all about being aware, staying vigilant, and using the tools at our disposal. Remember, your financial security is worth fighting for. So let’s not just sit back and hope for the best. Let’s take action and show those data brokers that we’re not going to be easy targets. After all, we’ve worked too hard for too long to let anyone mess with our golden years, right?

Do you think there should be regulations in place to limit the activities of data brokers? What specific measures would you like to see implemented to better protect your personal information? Let us know in the comments below.

TO GET MORE OF MY SECURITY ALERTS, SUBSCRIBE TO MY FREE CYBERGUY REPORT NEWSLETTER