This is the best privacy setting that almost no one is using; The Washington Post, September 6, 2024

 Shira Ovide, The Washington Post; This is the best privacy setting that almost no one is using

"Privacy laws in some states, notably California, give people the right to tell most businesses not to sell or share information they collect or in some cases to delete data about you. Some companies apply California’s privacy protections to everyone.

To take advantage of those privacy rights, though, you often must fill out complicated forms with dozens of companies. Hardly anyone does. The opt-out rights give you power in principle, but not in practice.

But baked into some state privacy laws is the option to enlist someone else to handle the legwork for you.

That wand-wielding privacy fairy godmother can be Consumer Reports, whose app can help you opt out of companies saving and selling your data. Even better, the godmother could just be a checkbox you click once to order every company to keep your data secret."