opt-out forms – A privacy rights review by EPIC found that opt-out paths at Meta, X, OpenAI, Tinder, Palantir, TikTok, Amazon, and SoundThinking often require logins, exclude non-California residents despite broader state laws, or omit any choice to opt out of sale or sharing
On a typical day, opting out of data sale or sharing should feel like a clear, reachable button. But in an EPIC review, the road to those choices repeatedly vanished behind logins, hidden links, or narrow rules that did not match state opt-out rights that already exist.
EPIC’s researchers said they couldn’t locate an opt-out process at all on Meta. X. OpenAI. and Tinder without first logging in. The review describes similar friction elsewhere: HireVue and the surveillance vendor DataTrust. EPIC found. frame their opt-out instructions as available only to California residents—even though 20 other states have passed laws granting opt-out rights.
The pattern widens beyond social platforms and AI companies. EPIC reports that Palantir—the defense and intelligence contractor—provides a privacy form on its website but does not include an option to opt out of the sale or sharing of personal data. EPIC says it documented the same missing option for TikTok, Amazon, and SoundThinking, the gunfire-detection vendor.
Even when a form exists, EPIC says it can be hard to reach. For Palantir. the researchers said the form is not clearly linked from its homepage or from its privacy policy. and they again reported being unable to locate an opt-out process on Palantir’s site. Meta. X. OpenAI. or Tinder without logging in first.
Amazon disputed the review’s findings. Adam Montgomery. a company spokesperson. said Amazon does not sell customer personal information. and therefore customers are opted out by default. Montgomery pointed to opt-out options for data sharing through “Your Ads Privacy Choices” and “Advertising Preferences” pages. and through privacy settings on most Amazon devices. He also said Amazon does not use the word “share” in its opt-out options. but argued the options cover the same uses defined by applicable law.
OpenAI pushed back in a different way—by emphasizing how it says control is offered to users. Shane Bauer, a spokesperson for OpenAI, said the company does not sell user data. He acknowledged that OpenAI does share limited data with marketing partners for targeted and cross-context behavioral advertising. Bauer said the company gives people “straightforward ways to control how their data is used directly in our apps. ” and added that its Privacy Portal is another path for submitting privacy requests. including for individuals who don’t have an OpenAI account but still want to exercise their privacy rights. “We think giving users multiple ways to exercise their rights is a good thing,” Bauer said.
HireVue disputed the review’s scope. Jackie Quintana. a HireVue spokesperson. said the company’s public privacy policy applies only to people who visit its marketing website. not to job applicants. Quintana said job applicants’ data is processed through HireVue’s HR platform under consent controls configured by each employer. The company did not address EPIC’s finding that its public-facing policy directs opt-out instructions only to California residents.
SoundThinking, the gunfire-detection vendor, said its opt-out forms can be found at the bottom of its privacy policy page, along with a customer help phone number.
Other companies named in the review did not respond to requests for comment, including Google, Meta, Spokeo, Whitepages, National Public Data, Bumble, X, DataTrust, Palantir, TikTok, and Tinder. Tinder acknowledged the inquiry but did not immediately provide a statement.
EPIC’s conclusion lands on something bigger than link placement. “Consumers cannot effectively protect their own privacy by exercising opt-out rights,” EPIC said. Even EPIC argues that a perfectly designed process—no buried links. no preselected toggles. no paywalls—would still force people to locate and submit requests to every company that holds. sells. or transfers their data. The remedy. EPIC said. is not better forms but less collection: rules that bar companies from gathering personal information they never needed in the first place.
For readers, the dispute isn’t just technical. It’s about whether “opt out” is a real choice—or something that turns into a maze right when people most want clarity.
EPIC opt-out rights data brokers privacy portal targeted advertising behavioral advertising Meta X OpenAI Tinder Palantir TikTok Amazon SoundThinking DataTrust HireVue