The Markup
· collected 2026-08-24 · by Colin Lecher and Mohamed Al Elew
California residents can now use a tool called DROP to request that data brokers delete their personal information and stop tracking them. Starting in August, data companies are required to process these requests. The California Privacy Protection Agency has established this platform for consumers to send instant requests to hundreds of data brokers at once. CalMatters and The Markup journalists Colin and Mohamed want readers' help testing the effectiveness of DROP by using it themselves and reporting back on their experiences with data brokers.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-24,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Californians can now request their personal data be deleted from hundreds of data brokers with just one click through a new platform called DROP, which was launched by the California Privacy Protection Agency at the beginning of this year. Data brokers collect sensitive information on consumers, including location data, purchase history, and medical records. The new tool allows consumers to send instant requests to data brokers to delete their data and stop tracking them, and brokers are required to process these requests starting in August. The California Privacy Protection Agency created this platform after an investigation by The Markup and CalMatters found that many companies were making it difficult for consumers to request their personal data be deleted, including using code that prevented those pages from appearing in search results on Google. Since the investigation was published, multiple companies have stopped hiding these pages. This new platform aims to make it easier for Californians to protect their personal data and hold data brokers accountable.
Written for “California Data Protection Law” on 2026-08-31,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political
question, so it has no leaning score. That is an
answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly
or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it
anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political
position.
No political leaning scored for article 2034 · logged 2026-08-27
Hello World is a special edition newsletter that goes deep into our original reporting, our own interactions with technology and the questions we put to big thinkers in the field.
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we → go → field
Hello there,
Our names are Colin and Mohamed, and we’re both journalists at CalMatters and The Markup.
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we → ’re → CalMatters
If you haven’t heard yet, California is offering a new way for people to protect their data — and we want your help tracking its rollout and effectiveness.
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we → hear → rollout
Data brokers are largely unknown companies that make a business out of collecting often-sensitive data on consumers.
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that → make → consumers
That data can include where you and your family are at all times, what you buy, what medications you’re taking and much more.
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you → include → medications
Starting at the beginning of this year, the California Privacy Protection Agency allowed residents of the state to sign up for the Delete Request and Opt-out Platform, or DROP.
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residents → start → Platform
The tool lets consumers send an instant request to hundreds of data brokers, asking them to delete their data and stop tracking them.
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consumers → let → them
The brokers are required to start processing those requests in August.
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brokers → require → August
We reported on the tool’s launch, and as new requests are processed, we’ll keep following the story.
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we → report → story
CalMatters and The Markup want to keep tabs on whether data companies comply with DROP, and that’s where we need your help.
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we → want → help
Californians have the right to know about the personal information a business collects about them and to control how it is used and shared.
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it → have → them
We’ll walk you through how to exercise those rights with some of the largest data brokers in the country and how to share what they tell you with us.
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they → walk → us
Then, after the DROP deadline, we’ll walk you through how to do it again, and we’ll help you figure out if the information companies have about you changed, grew, or was deleted.
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companies → walk → you
If you live in California, get started by following the steps in this article.
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you → live → article
If you don’t live in California, but have friends or family in California who would be interested in helping us investigate, please share this article with them.
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us → live → them
We appreciate the help!
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We → appreciate → help
