Infobreaker - data broker removal for macOS and Windows that runs 100% locally

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My name is Jim O’Gorman, founder of Tacita Labs and the developer of Infobreaker.

I spent most of the last 20 years building and teaching InfoSec training and running Kali Linux as Chief Content and Strategy Officer at OffSec, but left to take a break and focus on other topics that I find to be important. One of the issues that really has bothered me for a long time is the whole data broker industry, how it operates, and the fact the “solution” seems to be paying a cloud company and giving them your data. Which is a mess, as the brokers just relist anyway, so you are then hooked on a subscription plan forever in order to maintain any degree of control of your information.

Because of this, I created Infobreaker. A data broker removal tool that runs locally by controlling your local browser to search for your data across brokers, shows you what it found, lets the user confirm possible matches, submits automated or guided opt-outs, then re-checks after the broker’s response window. After that, it does validation that the removal occurs and then watches for relisting. It only calls a listing removed after it validates that the broker removed the listing.

There is no cloud service associated with this, there is no Infobreaker account or cloud dashboard, the profile and evidence remain in an AES-256-encrypted local vault. Your personal data is sent directly to broker sites only when the user runs a scan or removal. Infobreaker does do a version and automation check on startup, but does not send any information, it only retrieves what the latest versions are.

Currently, I have 57 brokers tracked. 26 have automated scanning, 3 have end-to-end automated opt-out, and 37 have assisted opt-out. Assistance is required for items like CAPTCHAs, which are obviously a big part of the process for most brokers.

It’s not perfect. Automations will sometimes break when the brokers update their sites. It requires user interaction to handle CAPTCHAs, email confirmations, and other items. It’s not a click-go-and-walk-away tool. Some of these limitations will improve over time, some are inherently part of the tool design. I feel they are acceptable trade-offs to allow you to maintain control of your data and where it goes.

MacOS and Windows only, no Linux right now (If people ask for it, I can do it). It requires Chrome to be installed for the browser automations. Free for non-commercial use.

I welcome any suggestions on how to improve the app, specifically the privacy model, how evidence is presented, operational trade-offs, and, in general, questions or criticisms. I would like this app to be usable by less technical users to remove the need for the various cloud subscription services, so any items I can do to help increase usability I am very interested in.

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