Executive Summary
California created the Delete Request and Opt-Out Platform (DROP) to make consumer privacy rights easier to exercise at statewide scale. Before DROP, Californians who wanted data brokers to delete or stop selling their personal information had to identify individual brokers, navigate separate request processes, repeat verification steps, and track responses individually. DROP replaces that fragmented process with one centralized service. DROP was developed through a partnership between the California Privacy Protection Agency (CalPrivacy) and the California Department of Technology (CDT). CalPrivacy provided policy direction and regulatory oversight under the Delete Act. CDT designed and delivered the technology infrastructure required to operate the service, including digital identity verification through the California Identity Gateway and secure transmission of requests to registered data brokers. The platform allows a California resident to verify eligibility, create a profile, and submit a single request that can reach more than 500 registered data brokers. Public reporting shows that to date more than 290,000 deletion requests have been submitted through DROP. Beginning August 1, 2026, data brokers are required to process deletion requests through the platform and continue deleting data on a recurring 45-day cycle. DROP creates value by reducing resident burden, improving consistency, and giving the state an operational mechanism to implement a complex privacy requirement. The project also extends California’s enterprise digital service capabilities by applying shared identity infrastructure, privacy-focused design, and coordinated platform operations to a high-demand public service.
