Incogni Review 2024: Hands-On Testing of a Top-Notch Data Removal Tool

We hands-on tested Surfshark's Incogni feature to see if the data removal service did what it claimed — send recurring removal requests to over 170 data brokers so they stop sharing your personal information.

Overall, we were pleased with the results, though there could be some additional options, like submitting personalized data removal requests and more of a human touch. But since this can come as part of the Surfshark One+ bundle, we thought it was a nice addition to the overall cybersecurity valued offered.

Here's how Incogni stood up against our testing and full review.

Incogni review at a glance

Price	$7.49–$32.98/mo
Money-back guarantee	Yes — 30 days
# of people covered	1-4
# of site removals	179
Recurring removals	Yes
Custom removal requests	No
Privacy reports	Yes
Supported countries	United States, Canada, UK, Isle of Man, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, EU
Extras	No, unless you get it as part of the Surfshark One+ plan
Details	Get Incogni

Our experience using Incogni

Our experience testing Incogni was super laid back and easy. All we had to do was sign a form, provide some basic details, then sit back and relax. After that, the service did all the heavy lifting for us, and we could periodically check in on the dashboard if we got curious.

The first step to setting up your Incogni account is crucial: signing an authorization form. This legal foothold empowers Incogni to act on your behalf in communicating with data brokers, serving as your advocate in the quest for data privacy. Without it, you'd have to do all the reaching out yourself.

The form might sound a bit scary, but it's a very specialized safeguard rather than a surrender of control in this context. 

After we signed the form, we just had to confirm the information that Incogni would go looking for. This was fairly straight-forward, and only required our full name, email address, and address. You can also add your birthday and up to three emails and home addresses to track.

Upon activating our account, Incogni’s service quickly requested to remove our data from 39 sites that include personal information. Upon refreshing the page, we were able to see that some of these requests were already completed.

We came back to Incogni about two weeks later to see how it was progressing. We were happy to see that 30 sites had removed our data, with 11 additional sites still in progress. To top it off, 15 sites were in "suppression" stage, which means they agreed to not only delete our data now, but never track it again in the future. Incogni estimates it saved us over 22 hours.

If you like to see the nitty-gritty details, Incogni provides the full list of websites its contacted as well as its current status in the "Detailed view" tab.

Here, you can check on the specific status of each site Incogni is sending requests to, including when the service plans to send the next followup request. Incogni sends recurring requests every 90 days unless the site suppresses your information permanently, so you know you're covered for as long as your subscription is active.

Other than check out the status of your requests and update your personal information, there's not much else for you to do on your dashboard. Everything is automated and there's no extra features like submitting custom requests or new scans you can initiate.

Overall, Incogni felt easy-to-use, intuitive, and provided satisfying updates that made us feel like something was actually getting done. There may not be a lot of bells and whistles, but it was well organized and did what it promised.

Who is Incogni best for?

• Recommended for people who want a laid back but detailed service to remove all their personal data online.

The whole point of data removal services is to take all the work out of keeping your data safe online. Incogni does exactly that and you never have to lift a finger again once your account is set up. This will be very attractive to most people who are interested in data removal.

But for those who also want to be in the know about what sites their data has been removed from and how things are progressing, Incogni provides a very satisfying dashboard that gives you all the data you want.

Incogni prices and subscriptions

There are only two pricing options: annual at $7.49/mo (billed annually) or monthly at $14.98/mo. There are no service levels — everyone who signs up for the service receives the exact same thing. That said, you can opt for the Friends & Family plan if you want to cover up to four people in one plan. These plans are $16.49/mo (billed annually) and $32.98/mo.

When it comes to paid data removal services, this price range is very similar to what you'll get with competitors. For example, DeleteMe ranges from a very similar $8.60–$34.40/mo.

But another option you have is to get Incogni as part of the Surfshark One+ subscription bundle. This plan ranges from $3.99/mo (billed every two years) to $20.65/mo and comes with much more features, such as a VPN, antivirus, and more. This is a unique option that not many other data removals have.

Plan	Individual	Friends & Family	Surfshark One+
Annual plan	$7.49/mo (billed annually)	$16.49/mo (billed annually)	$5.99/mo (billed annually)
Monthly plan	$14.98/mo	$32.98/mo	$20.65/mo
Max # people covered	1	4	1
Extra features			VPN, antivirus, and more
Details	View plan	View plan	View plan

Incogni security features

Incogni completely delivers on the data removal front, sending out removal requests on your behalf to over 170 data brokers and following up every 90 days.

But other than that, there's no other bells and whistles to get excited about — which may be perfectly fine. This product does exactly what it says it does.

How does Incogni work?

Incogni pinpoints companies most likely to harbor your data by using its algorithm to scour the digital landscape, identifying potential data repositories with high accuracy. Once these companies are identified, Incogni steps into action, contacting them to initiate the opt-out process.

The backbone of Incogni's operation lies in its adept use of prevailing privacy laws. In the realm of the European Union, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) provides a solid legal footing for personal data removal. Across the Atlantic, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) serves a similar purpose in the United States. Meanwhile, Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) bolsters Incogni’s data removal endeavors in the Canadian domain.

By leveraging these legal frameworks, Incogni not only requests but necessitates the removal of personal data from broker databases, making the opt-out process persuasive and authoritative. It estimates that if you were to do this process yourself, it would take approximately 304 hours of your time just for the initial removal requests. Follow-up requests could be infinite.

Types of data removed

All you need to do is provide your name, email, and address and Incogni will use this to identify your personal information that's stored across the web.

The full bundle of your information may include any of the following:

• Name
• Birthday
• Gender
• Phone number
• Addresses (both current and former)
• Associated family members
• Family members’ ages
• Health information
• Financial information, such as your bank or credit card company
• Social Security number
• Employment info
• Education

Data broker and people-search sites covered

• # of sites covered: 170+

Incogni sends out data removal requests in your name to over 170 data brokers, which include the following categories: 

• Risk mitigation data: A variety of background, criminal, property, and other data that could potentially risk individuals or businesses.
• Recruitment data: Personal information accessible by recruiters, which may include employment history, skills, and contacts.
• People search data: Data available on about 66 people search sites, often including addresses, phone numbers, and other personal details.
• Financial information: Financial data such as credit scores, loan information, or other financial standings.
• Marketing data: Personal information like your browsing habits, past purchases, and interests used by marketing agencies to target individuals for advertising.
• Health information: Personal health data may encompass medical history, insurance information, or other health-related details.

Just remember that this number can fluctuate often, as Incogni is constantly adding and removing sites on their mailing list. You can see which sites Incogni is currently covering here.

Recurring and custom removals

Incogni follows up with every data removal request they make after 90 days, even if the request is successful. The only time Incogni will stop following up with a company is if they've marked your file as suppressed, which means the broker has agreed never to host your data on their site again.

Unfortunately, you're not able to submit custom removals at this time. This would be helpful if you find a specific site that lists your information that you'd like taken down but isn't on Incogni's current list. 

Bonus features 

If you buy Incogni as a standalone product, there are no real bonus features to play with. The service does exactly what it promises to and not much else.

But if you're looking for a bit more shine, you can opt for a Surfshark One+ bundle, which can be handy if you're in need of a cybersecurity suite. It includes the following:

• Surfshark VPN
• CleanWeb ad and tracker blocker
• 24/7 antivirus protection with Surfshark Antivirus
• Private search engine
• Email masking
• Data breach alerts

Does Incogni keep your data safe?

Incogni doesn’t have a bad privacy policy. Yes, it shares your data, but that’s with the services it works with to provide you its services: “We do not sell your personal information. For example, we share it with our partners who help us deliver our Service.”

There’s even a line in the privacy policy about all data being completely deleted within 12 months of stopping service or when you request it (and the company is legally required to delete it). Also, your data isn’t shared unless legally required: “Finally, we may also share your personal information to comply with applicable laws and regulations, to respond to a subpoena, search warrant or other lawful request for information we receive, or to otherwise protect our rights.”

Remember, when we’re talking about the legality of sharing data, it’s likely this won’t affect the average person. In fact, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) are two U.S. laws intended to protect your information.

Surfshark Incogni customer support

Support is more of a help-yourself situation with Incogni. There’s a vast library of questions you can search, as well as commonly asked questions listed out for you.

If you do need additional assistance, there’s a submission form on the website that generates email support. Even in the submission form, the service will try to redirect you to a help page so you don’t have to wait for a response.

There’s no space within your dashboard or portal to cancel your Incogni subscription. If you want to do that, you will have to reach out to support@incogni.com, and they'll get back to you in 24 hours. The site also mentions that you can cancel at any time.

Top alternatives

While Incogni offers a comprehensive approach toward personal data removal, it's prudent to explore other avenues that may resonate more with your individual preferences or requirements.

There are several alternative data removal services, each with unique features that might cater to different needs. Below are some of the notable alternatives to Incogni:

Incogni review FAQs

Bottom line: Is Incogni data removal legit?

Yes, Incogni is a legitimate data removal service that showed us quite clearly the continual work it put into keeping our data online. We would recommend it to anyone who wants a set-it-and-forget-it approach to keeping more of your data off the internet as possible.

Incogni isn’t a fancy or frilly data removal service. It really only has one purpose, and that’s to hunt down and remove your data from brokers across the internet. This includes removing your data from Google and a slew of sites you haven’t heard of before.

Its algorithm-driven approach and diligent follow-up on data removal requests underscore its legitimacy and effectiveness. While the process might not be instant, the persistent endeavor of Incogni in navigating the convoluted world of data brokers to erase personal data is a testament to its commitment.

But if you’re looking for additional features, you may want to opt for the full-service Surfshark One+ bundle instead of settling for Incogni as a standalone product.

If you're interested in more in-depth comparisons, here's how Incogni compares to some of the best data removal services around:

• DeleteMe vs. Incogni
• HelloPrivacy vs. Incogni
• Optery vs. Incogni
• Hogo Privacy Defense vs. Incogni
• Privacy Bee vs. Incogni