Imagine making shadowy data brokers erase your personal info. Californians may soon live the dream

California, which already has some of the strongest digital privacy laws in the U.S., is on the verge of handing consumers a major new tool to combat the sale and secret use of personal information they may never have agreed to share. Both houses of the state legislature have passed the Delete Act, which would establish a “one stop shop” where individuals could order hundreds of often shadowy data brokers to delete information such as their location history and financial details. At the moment, doing so would require contacting each of those companies separately. The measure could have significant implications for businesses and individuals — and not just in California.