The National Public Data opt-out form lives at nationalpublicdata.com/optout.html: you search your name on the site, copy your profile URL, paste it into the form, and confirm the request by email. Before you spend time on it, know that National Public Data’s parent company, Jerico Pictures, Inc., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on October 2, 2024, after a breach exposed billions of records. The page may still respond, but the company behind it is essentially defunct, and submitting the form does nothing about data already leaked. The credit and tax steps further down protect you far more than the form does.
Filling Out and Submitting the Form
The process starts on the search page, not the opt-out page. You need a link to your own profile before the form will accept anything.
- Go to nationalpublicdata.com and search your name. If a matching listing appears, click “View Full Profile.”
- On your full profile page, copy the URL from your browser’s address bar.
- Open nationalpublicdata.com/optout.html.1National Public Data. National Public Data Opt Out
- Paste the profile URL into the “Your Profile Link” field and click “Request Removal.”
- Enter a valid email address when prompted.
If your name is common, more than one profile may match you. Each profile needs its own submission and its own email confirmation, so search carefully for duplicates.
Confirming the Request by Email
After you click “Request Removal,” check your inbox for a confirmation message from the site. It contains a verification link, and the request will not move forward unless you click it. Look in spam or junk if nothing arrives within a few minutes.
Once confirmed, the request enters a processing queue. Removals historically took about 24 to 48 hours, but with the company in its current state, timing is unpredictable. You can search your name on the site again after waiting to see whether the profile is gone. If it still appears, either there is another record to submit or the system is no longer processing requests reliably.
Why the Form Is Only a Small Piece
In April 2024, billions of records from National Public Data were published on the dark web, including full names, Social Security numbers, mailing addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, and information about relatives.2Microsoft. National Public Data breach: What you need to know The breach reportedly affected up to 170 million people in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.3IBM. National Public Data breach publishes private data of 2.9B US citizens Jerico Pictures then filed for Chapter 11 in the Southern District of Florida; the case was dismissed at the end of October 2024 and terminated in January 2025.4PACER Monitor. Jerico Pictures, Inc. Bankruptcy (0:24-bk-20281)
Removing your profile does not pull leaked data back from the dark web, and it does not touch the many other broker sites that hold similar information. If your Social Security number was exposed, the steps below are what actually reduce the harm.
Steps That Actually Protect You
Freeze Your Credit With All Three Bureaus
A credit freeze blocks new credit accounts from being opened in your name. It is free, and you place it separately with Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion online, by phone, or by mail.5USAGov. How to place or lift a security freeze on your credit report Freezing at one bureau does not freeze the others. When you need to apply for credit yourself, you lift the freeze temporarily using a PIN or password the bureau gives you. This is the single most effective step against someone using a stolen Social Security number to open loans or credit cards.
Get an IRS Identity Protection PIN
An IRS Identity Protection PIN is a six-digit number that prevents anyone else from filing a tax return using your Social Security number. The fastest way to get one is through your IRS online account. If you cannot verify your identity online and your adjusted gross income is below $84,000 (or $168,000 for married filing jointly), you can submit Form 15227 instead. You can also visit a local Taxpayer Assistance Center in person with a government-issued photo ID.6Internal Revenue Service. Get an identity protection PIN
Check Whether Your Data Was in the Breach
Microsoft offers a free identity scan through Microsoft Defender that checks whether your personal data appeared in the National Public Data breach or on the dark web. You sign in with a Microsoft account; no paid subscription is needed for the basic check.2Microsoft. National Public Data breach: What you need to know
Report Misuse at IdentityTheft.gov
If you find that someone has already used your information, report it at IdentityTheft.gov, the FTC’s recovery portal. It builds a personalized recovery plan based on the type of fraud and generates official reports you can send to creditors, banks, and law enforcement.
Opting Out of Other Broker Sites
National Public Data was one of many companies that collect and sell personal information. Your name, address, and phone number likely appear on BeenVerified, Spokeo, Whitepages, Intelius, PeopleFinders, Radaris, and dozens of similar sites. Each has its own procedure: some accept an online form, others require a mailed letter or a fax. Handling them yourself is free but slow, and many sites eventually re-populate your data from public records, so a removal today may not stick. Checking back every few months helps.
Paid removal services submit and re-submit opt-out requests across many sites on a recurring schedule. Pricing generally ranges from about $20 a year for basic coverage to $250 or more for services that monitor hundreds of sites. Whether that is worth paying depends on how many sites list you and how often you want the removals refreshed.
If You Live in California
The California Consumer Privacy Act gives California residents the right to request deletion of their personal data from businesses that collect it. Those rights apply only to California residents.7State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. California Consumer Privacy Act If you live in another state, the CCPA does not give you a legal right to compel deletion.
California’s Delete Act, signed in 2023, created a one-stop portal called DROP (Delete Request and Opt-Out Platform). Starting January 1, 2026, California residents can submit a single request through DROP, and registered data brokers must check the system and process deletions every 45 days beginning August 1, 2026.8California Privacy Protection Agency. Delete Request and Opt-out Platform For California residents facing many broker sites, DROP is likely to be a faster route than submitting individual forms one at a time.