All of these unchecked practices undermine civil rights. Companies that boast holding thousands of data points on millions or billions of people—all for selling them to whomever is buying—themselves represent the aggregation of unrestrained surveillance power. This is particularly dangerous to the less powerful. As centuries of surveillance in the United States have made undeniably clear, the impact of stockpiling individuals’ personal information will fall hardest on the already oppressed or marginalized: the poor, Black and brown communities, Indigenous populations, LGBTQ+ individuals, undocumented immigrants. “People search” websites in particular can publicize addresses and thus enable intimate partner violence or doxing. The strong financial incentives to sell data, with virtually nonexistent limitations, gives these companies every reason to share their data with others, including those who use it for harm.

Sherman, J. (2021, April 13). Data brokers are a threat to democracy. Wired. https://www.wired.com/story/opinion-data-brokers-are-a-threat-to-democracy/