An Empirical Analysis of Data Deletion and Opt-Out Choices on 150 Websites
summary
Manual content analysis of 150 websites (stratified by traffic) inspects email opt-outs, targeted‑ad opt-outs and data‑deletion flows using an 82‑question template; results show choices are common but often unusable: average shortest‑path user actions are 5.3 for email and deletion and 3.2 for ads, New York Times can require up to 38 actions, Amazon exposes 69 checkboxes with the global opt‑out buried at the bottom, 83% of 108 deletion mechanisms omit a deletion timeframe, and privacy text averages Flesch‑Kincaid ≈13. Recommendations: standardized headings, a unified privacy center, fewer clicks, clearer outcome descriptions.
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