It takes 5 minutes to protect your identity and dodge spam and text calls for years…. if you live in California

After years of telling companies, very politely and very individually, to please stop hoarding their personal data, California has finally introduced a more efficient solution: a digital eraser with a button. As of Jan. 1, the state launched the first-in-the-nation Delete Request and Opt-out Platform—mercifully shortened to “DROP”—which lets residents scrub large chunks of their online footprints in one fell swoop instead of playing endless whack-a-mole with data brokers. With a few minutes of clicking and verification, Californians can force these behind-the-scenes collectors—who quietly trade details about our locations, shopping habits, and app addictions like baseball cards—to delete much of what they’ve gathered, offering some relief from spam calls, targeted scams, and digital creepers. It’s privacy protection, California-style: still bureaucratic, but finally with a satisfying “delete” button.