I Kept Hearing the Same Ad on Every Podcast. So I Built a Cheaper Version.

I love podcasts. Genuinely.

Two I actually listen to and recommend: The Best One Yet (TBOY) and Morning Brew Daily. Both are great daily news shows where the hosts have personality, are entertaining, and you actually learn something. Genuine recommendations, not a bit.

But if you listen to enough podcasts, you start noticing something. The same ad follows you everywhere. Different shows, different hosts, different topics — same pitch. "Your personal data is out there on the internet. Hackers can find it. Scammers can find it. For just $129 a year, we'll remove it for you."

I kept hearing it on my morning commute. Kept hearing it on my lunch break. And after a while I stopped skipping past it and started actually listening. Not because I wanted to buy it. Because I wanted to understand what exactly $129 a year was getting someone.

What these services actually do

So I looked into it. I wanted to know: what is the product here? What does someone actually receive for $129?

Here is the answer. They scan data broker websites for your name, phone number, and address. When they find a listing, they submit an opt-out form on your behalf, or send a deletion request under applicable privacy law. A month later, they check back to confirm you are still removed. Then they keep monitoring and repeat the process if you resurface.

That is it. That is the whole product. Scan, submit, confirm, repeat.

None of that is hard to automate. The actual work — the part that takes time and expertise — is building the system once. After that, a script can handle it. Those services do good work. But a big chunk of that $129 goes to the marketing that got the ad in front of you in the first place. Podcast sponsorships are not cheap.

So I built the same thing for $9.99

I am a small business owner and a dad. I solve problems for a living. When I hear a price that does not match the underlying work, I figure out what it would actually cost to do it right.

I built Unlisted to do the same thing these services do: scan data broker sites, submit opt-out requests, send legal deletion demands, and keep checking back to make sure it sticks. Same process. Same sites. Same outcome.

The price is $9.99 a year. Not $129. Not a monthly fee that adds up to more than that anyway. Nine dollars and ninety-nine cents.

The difference is we keep it simple. No podcast ad budget. No sales team. We automated the work and passed the savings along to you.

We also give you screenshots. Not just a dashboard that says "removed" in green text with no evidence. Actual screenshots showing your listing is gone, so you are not just trusting us — you can see it yourself.

The real reason this matters

Data removal sounds abstract until you realize what it actually does to your daily life. When your phone number is listed on broker sites, telemarketers buy it. Scammers buy it. Robocallers buy it. Your phone does not stop.

Remove your number from those sites, and the calls slow down. The spam texts slow down. You get back the quiet that you did not realize you were missing until you had it again.

You can actually listen to your podcast without your phone buzzing halfway through the episode with an unknown number. Which, if you think about it, is a pretty good pitch for a data removal service to make on a podcast.

I still listen to those podcasts every day. I still hear the ads. But now I smile a little, because I know the same thing costs $9.99. And honestly? I think the podcast hosts would appreciate that too.

And if you like those podcasts — hit that subscribe. They don't pay us to say that.

Free scan. 60 seconds. See who's selling your number. iamunlisted.com