The Bottom Line: Spokeo.com
What is this website, and how can I get off of it?
Several CBS 6 viewers have e-mailed to ask those questions, wanting The Bottom Line on the website Spokeo.com.
The site is pretty simple: you type in someone's name, e-mail address or phone number, and find all kinds of information -- like their age, ethnicity, home value, even zodiac sign.
If you scroll down even further, it offers you the chance to see more "personal" information -- like their credit estimate, wealth level, mortgage level, and investments -- but, only if you pay for a membership.
That's still enough to concern a number of viewers. So what's The Bottom Line on Spokeo.com?
CBS 6's Dori Marlin did some digging and learned, the site was first started four years ago by college roommates at Stanford University. They changed the format of the site just recently, and one of the co-founders tells Dori it's triggered a "tsunami" of response. But Harrison Tang says, not all are that concerned.
"The percentage of of people who e-mail us or actually complain to us is very low, in the single percentage," Tang tells Dori.
"Is this all technically public information?" Dori asked.
"Actually, it is public information," says Tang.
Dori asked Tang about being able to see someone's credit score on the website. "That's actually one of the myths out there," he answered. "We do not have people's credit scores, we do not have people's bank account information, we do not have people's social security numbers, we do not have people's drivers licenses."
To prove it, Tang offered Dori a free trial membership, so she could log on herself. She did, and found that Tang is correct -- for the most part: it doesn't offer a "credit score," but it offers a credit estimate... low, medium, high, or very high. It doesn't show "investments," but it shows a wealth level... top 40%, 50%, and so on.
In looking at the basic information you "don't" have to pay for, Dori found much of her own to be inaccurate. She had others in the CBS 6 newsroom look up their information as well, and the majority found the same.
Dori asked Tang about that, too; he told her that Spokeo is simply an "information aggregator" from other sites, and that it is "nothing more and nothing less."
So how can you remove yourself from its database?
At the bottom of the Spokeo.com homepage, click on "Privacy." Another page comes up, with prompts on how to remove yourself. You will have to enter the URL of your Spokeo profile page, your e-mail address, and the code it gives you. From there, an e-mail will be sent to you; and on there, just click on the confirmation link.
If something else is affecting your Bottom Line that you'd like Dori to look into, send her an e-mail at news@cbs6albany.com .
