Why Deleting Your Personal Data Is Getting Harder In The AI Era

For years, you could remove personal information from the internet by finding a data broker or people-search site and filing an opt-out request. Artificial intelligence has turned that process on its head.

“AI gives personal data a longer lifespan,” said Kalleigh Lane, managing editor at All About Cookies. “It can be copied and used to build new profiles quickly, with no indication of where they went.”

Automated systems can collect public records, commercial data and information disclosed online, then connect details from separate databases. You might remove a listing, only to see it return through another source. Deletion requests still move one company at a time across most of the United States.

Americans understand that something is wrong, even if they are unsure what to do about it. In a June 2026 survey of 1,000 U.S. adults by All About Cookies, 92% said having their personal information online caused them at least some anxiety.

More than two-thirds felt they had little or no control over what was available.

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Data Collection Is Instant

Data brokers have built consumer profiles for decades. AI allows companies to do that work faster and across much larger collections.

The Federal Trade Commission has warned that technological advances can make it “less burdensome and less expensive” for companies to collect and process vast swathes of data through third parties, machine learning, and AI.

According to a recent survey from my company, Prosper Insights & Analytics, 61% of U.S. adults were extremely or very concerned that AI would violate their privacy by using their data. Only 13% were not concerned at all.

Nearly one-third said AI needs more disclosure or transparency about the data it uses.