Before buying anything in this market, run a free scan. Six tools here will tell you what is actually exposed, at no cost and without a card, and the result changes what you should buy more than any comparison table can.
The main reference page covers the paid market. This record covers only the free diagnostic layer, what each scanner actually checks, and where the free tier ends.
Free scanners are lead generation, and that is fine if you know it
Every scanner here exists to sell you the paid product behind it. That does not make the results wrong, and the data returned is genuine.
It does mean two things. The scan is scoped to what the paid product removes, so a broker removal tool reports broker listings and says nothing about a news article. And results are presented to look actionable, because an alarming number converts better than a reassuring one.
The correct use is to run two or three and compare. Overlap is real exposure. A finding that appears in one scan and not the others is worth checking manually before it changes your buying decision.
The six
| Scanner | What it checks | Card required | Free tier ends at |
|---|---|---|---|
 BrandYourself |
Name search results, profile issues | No | Fixing anything |
 Atlas Privacy |
Broker exposure, plus 50 opt-out guides | No | Automated submission |
 Optery |
375 plus broker and people search sites | No | Removal |
 Privacy Bee |
Broker exposure | No | Removal |
 Kanary |
Broker exposure, ongoing free tier | No | Full coverage |
 Mozilla Monitor |
Known data breaches | No | Nothing, it is fully free |
Entries
BrandYourself
Type: software with managed tiers. Founded 2010, New York, under HelloPrivacy LLC. Free tier: permanent, not a trial.
The only scanner here that examines what appears in a search for your name rather than what sits in broker databases. That makes it the correct first scan for anyone whose concern is what an employer or client will find, as opposed to what a marketer holds.
It reports issues and does not fix them. Paid DIY plans from around 29 a month.
Best for: Diagnosing a name search problem before buying anything.
Not ideal for: Buyers wanting the scan to also resolve what it finds.
Last verified March 12, 2026.
Atlas Privacy
Type: hybrid. Founded 2021, Jersey City, Y Combinator S21. Free tier: exposure scan plus more than 50 DIY opt-out guides.
The most substantial free offering in this record, because the guides are the paid product of several competitors written out as instructions. A buyer willing to spend an afternoon can clear real listings without paying anyone, and will understand their own exposure better afterwards.
Paid plans from around 9 a month cover 150 plus brokers with weekly re-scans, the fastest cadence recorded here. The Daniel’s Law litigation the company is known for benefits assigned New Jersey officials and not ordinary subscribers.
Best for: DIY-inclined buyers, anyone who wants to understand the process.
Not ideal for: Buyers wanting breadth of coverage on the paid tier.
Last verified July 2026.
Optery
Type: software. Founded 2020, San Francisco Bay Area, Y Combinator backed. Free tier: scan across 375 plus sites, no card.
The most detailed broker scan available free, and the paid product behind it is the only one supplying before and after screenshot evidence of removals. SOC 2 Type II certified, PCMag Editors’ Choice 2022, 2023 and 2024.
Paid from 3.99 a month, with the cheapest tier limited to one name and one location.
Best for: A thorough broker exposure picture at no cost.
Not ideal for: Anything outside broker and people search data.
Last verified July 14, 2026.
Privacy Bee
Type: software. Founded 2020, Alpharetta, Georgia. Free tier: privacy scan, no credit card, with a 30 day money back on paid plans.
Useful as a cross-check against Optery, since the two draw on different broker lists and the difference is informative. Paid entry from 8 a month, claiming up to 1,121 brokers on higher tiers.
Two documented issues on the paid side: independent testing found removals well short of the advertised coverage after months, and multiple reviewers report that cancelling or fully deleting an account is difficult.
Best for: A second opinion on broker exposure.
Not ideal for: Buyers who want a straightforward exit from the paid tier.
Last verified July 2026.
Kanary
Type: software. Founded 2020, Chicago, backed by Y Combinator and Mozilla Builders. Free tier: ongoing rather than a one-off scan.
The free tier persists rather than expiring, which makes it the only continuous free broker watch here. Coverage figures are not published, which limits comparison, and the company is the youngest in this record.
Best for: Ongoing free visibility of broker exposure.
Not ideal for: Buyers needing verifiable coverage numbers.
Last verified July 2026.
Mozilla Monitor
Type: software, nonprofit operated. Mozilla traces to 1998, Foundation formed 2003. Entirely free.
The only scanner here checking breach data rather than broker listings, covering exposed emails, passwords, card numbers and bank account numbers with ongoing alerts and guided remediation. Roughly 10 million users across 237 countries since 2018.
It is also the only entry with no paid tier to sell, following the discontinuation of Monitor Plus in December 2025, which makes it the one scan on this page with no commercial incentive attached to the result. Older reviews describing it as a removal tool are out of date.
Best for: Everyone, permanently, at no cost.
Not ideal for: Anyone expecting removal of anything.
Last verified July 2026.
How to read what the scans return
Three findings and what each means for spending.
Broker listings only. The common result. A 20 to 130 dollar a year subscription addresses it and no agency is required.
Breach exposure. Change the affected passwords, enable two factor authentication, and freeze your credit at the three bureaus, which is free. No subscription here recalls leaked data.
An article, record, review or empty first page. None of these scanners will find this reliably, because none of them look for it. If your own name search surfaces something like that, the scan results are not the relevant information and the paid products behind them will not help.
Notes
Scanners report against their own coverage lists, so absence from a scan is not evidence of absence from the internet. Two scans disagreeing is normal and reflects different broker lists rather than an error in either.
No scanner in this record requires payment details, which is the line that separates a free scan from a trial. Any tool asking for a card before showing results belongs in the paid section of the provider database instead.
Compiled July 2026.
Last updated on July 29, 2026