Idahoans Need To Delete Their Sensitive Information From This Scary Website Now

If someone published your cell phone number, e-mail address, list of relatives and a map directly to your home online without your permission, you'd be livid...right? Well, it already happened and you didn't know it. 

You can thank the creators of FamilyTreeNow.com for exposing your information to anyone on the internet who knows your name. They call themselves the "best free genealogy site in the world," but they also admit to wanting to give people information that they'd normally have to pay for...for free. That includes YOUR sensitive information that we mentioned above.

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The first time I stumbled across this website, I was absolutely terrified by what I saw. When I searched my legal name, this website showed my name, year of birth, possible relatives (which accurately included my parents and sister with click through links to their names/info,) list of my current and previous addresses dating back to the house I grew up in and my cell phone number. What's really scary is there was a "Map" button next to my addresses both here in Boise and in another state that redirects you to a map with a pin dropped on the location.

I had a relationship end badly nearly a decade ago. While I don't think my ex would have any reason to fly to Idaho and just show up at my home today, I was still a little uneasy that FamilyTreeNow.com made my home address that easy to access.

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The search results for my dad were even more invasive. While they didn't list his current e-mail address, the results did list MY first e-mail address that was register under his name since I was a minor when we set it up eons ago.

Luckily, you can opt out and ask to have your information opt out of their records. If you search for yourself on their website and are horrified by what you see, click HERE to visit their opt out page.

I successfully opted my information out back in 2017 and you can't find me at all on there now. However since I completed my opt-out, they've made it more difficult to do. Now you have to submit an e-mail address so they can e-mail you a link to finalize your optout request. This website is already super shady, so I'd suggest setting up a dummy account that isn't linked to your actual name or phone number!