What Is Incogni? How Surfshark Data Removal Actually Works

Incogni is a service that automatically removes your personal information from data broker websites. It is included with Surfshark One+ and is also available as a standalone subscription. Here is a plain-English explanation of what it does and whether it is worth using.

What are data brokers?

Data brokers are companies that collect personal information and sell it. They aggregate data from public records including property records, court filings, and voter registration lists, combined with commercial data from loyalty programmes, purchase histories, and online behaviour tracking. The result is detailed profiles on hundreds of millions of people.

This information is sold to marketers for targeted advertising, to employers for background checks, to landlords for tenant screening, and to anyone else willing to pay. Your name, home address, phone number, email addresses, relatives, employment history, and estimated income are likely available from dozens of these companies right now without your knowledge or consent.

How Incogni works

Incogni connects to your account, collects your basic personal information, and uses it to search over 180 data broker databases for your records. When it finds your data, it submits legally required removal requests under applicable privacy laws including GDPR in Europe and CCPA in California. Brokers are legally required to comply with these requests within specific timeframes.

The process is ongoing. Data brokers frequently re-add data after removal, particularly from public records sources that they continuously monitor. Incogni monitors for re-addition and automatically submits new removal requests as needed.

What Incogni cannot do

Incogni removes your data from the 180+ brokers on its list. It cannot remove information from Google search results, social media profiles, news articles, or any source outside its broker database. It also cannot remove information from government public record systems, only from the commercial brokers that aggregate that information.

Is Incogni worth it?

At $6.49 per month as a standalone service, Incogni is worth it for users who are concerned about data broker exposure. People who have experienced harassment, professionals who want to limit their public footprint, and anyone who has found their personal information on people-search sites will see direct value. As part of Surfshark One+ at the same price with a VPN and antivirus included, it is exceptional value for privacy-conscious users.