Is Radaris Safe? Fake CEO, Offshore Shell Company, and Your SSN (2026)
Here’s what you need to know upfront: Radaris isn’t just another people-search site. In March 2024, cybersecurity journalist Brian Krebs published an investigation revealing that Radaris was founded by two brothers using fake names, operated through a Cyprus shell company, and publicly listed a CEO who turned out to be a completely fabricated person. The site publishes partial Social Security numbers, carries an F rating from the BBB, and has a documented track record of ignoring opt-out requests. If your name is in their database — and with billions of records, it almost certainly is — here’s what they have and what you can do about it.
Radaris makes removal deliberately difficult, and removed profiles frequently reappear. DeleteMe covers Radaris and 986 other broker sites with a dedicated representative who handles the full opt-out lifecycle — initial submission, verification, and resubmission when your data resurfaces.
What Radaris Is — and Who’s Behind It
Radaris launched in 2009 as a people-search engine that scrapes public records, court documents, property filings, social media profiles, and commercial data sources into searchable profiles. On the surface, it looks like any other data broker. Underneath, the story gets stranger.
A Krebs on Security investigation published in March 2024 traced the company back to two brothers based in Massachusetts — Igor Lybarsky (operating under the alias “Gary Norden”) and Dmitry Lybarsky (using the name “Dan”). The corporate entity listed on the site is Bitseller Expert Ltd, registered in Cyprus — a jurisdiction frequently chosen specifically to complicate legal proceedings and dodge US transparency requirements.
The investigation also found that the person publicly listed as Radaris’s CEO didn’t exist. The brothers’ own attorney later confirmed the identity was fabricated. When Krebs published his findings, Radaris responded not by addressing the revelations, but by threatening a defamation lawsuit against the journalist.
The Lybarsky brothers also operated multiple Russian-language dating services and affiliate marketing programs. Some of their businesses maintained ties to American Russian Media Inc., a California firm that has advertised sanctioned Russian state media outlets including Channel One.
None of this necessarily means Radaris will steal your identity directly. But when the people running a company that publishes your personal data are themselves hiding behind aliases, shell companies, and a fake executive — it tells you something about how seriously they take accountability.
What Radaris Publishes About You
Radaris builds profiles from billions of personal records. A typical listing includes:
| Data Type | What Radaris Shows |
|---|---|
| Full name and known aliases | ✅ |
| Current and previous addresses | ✅ |
| Phone numbers | ✅ |
| Email addresses | ✅ |
| Age and date of birth | ✅ |
| Relatives and associates | ✅ |
| Social media profiles | ✅ |
| Employment and education history | ✅ |
| Criminal and court records | ✅ |
| Property ownership records | ✅ |
| Domain names you own | ✅ |
| Personal photographs | ✅ |
| First 6 digits of your SSN | ✅ |
That last row is what separates Radaris from most data brokers. Sites like Spokeo and BeenVerified don’t touch Social Security numbers at all. Radaris publishes the first six digits. Since your last four digits circulate widely through other records — medical forms, utility accounts, older tax documents — anyone with basic research skills can piece together your full nine-digit SSN from a Radaris report combined with one other source. That’s not a theoretical risk. That’s a reconstruction pathway.
The Legal History
Radaris has been named in multiple lawsuits, though its offshore structure has made enforcement difficult:
2014 — $7.5 Million Default Judgment: A class-action lawsuit resulted in a $7.5 million default judgment against Radaris. The company failed to appear in court. Despite the ruling, collection proved nearly impossible, and Radaris managed to reclaim its domain name through a legal technicality in 2018.
October 2023 — Illinois Class-Action: An Illinois resident filed a class-action alleging Radaris violated the state’s Right of Publicity Act by using people’s names and likenesses for commercial gain without consent.
February 2024 — New Jersey Daniel’s Law: Atlas Data Privacy Corp. sued Radaris for violating Daniel’s Law — a New Jersey statute that requires complete removal of personal data belonging to law enforcement officers, judges, and their families upon request. The suit alleged Radaris refused to comply.
The TruthFinder Connection: Radaris routes background check requests through TruthFinder, which was fined $5.8 million by the FTC in September 2023. The fine covered deceptive accuracy claims and fake “Remove” and “Flag as Inaccurate” buttons that didn’t actually do anything. If you’ve ever clicked a remove button on a Radaris-sourced report, there’s reason to question whether it worked.
How to Remove Yourself from Radaris
The process has changed over the years. As of August 2026:
- Go to radaris.com and search for your full name
- Find your profile in the results
- Scroll to the bottom of your profile page and click “Remove My Information”
- On the next screen, paste the URL of your profile page
- Submit the request and check your email for a verification link
- Click the verification link to confirm the removal
Radaris no longer requires you to create an account to opt out — that used to be a catch that forced you to hand over additional personal data just to request removal of existing data.
What to watch for:
- Duplicate profiles. Search your name variations — maiden names, middle names, nicknames. Each profile needs a separate removal request.
- The 24-hour window is optimistic. Radaris claims removal within 24 hours, but independent tests show it can take longer, and some profiles are never fully removed.
- Partial removal. Radaris has a history of hiding information from one search view while it remains accessible through other query paths. Just because your name search comes back empty doesn’t mean your data is gone.
- Alternative contact: If the web form fails, call (855) 723-2747 (Mon–Fri 9am–5pm, Sat 10am–4pm ET).
Why Radaris Is Harder to Stay Off Than Other Brokers
Most data broker opt-outs follow a predictable cycle: you submit a removal, it works for a few months, your data gets re-ingested from public records, and you start over. That cycle is frustrating but at least honest.
Radaris adds a layer of unreliability on top of that. The BBB’s F rating exists specifically because Radaris has a pattern of not following through on removal requests. Multiple privacy researchers have reported that Radaris compliance rates trail behind Whitepages, Spokeo, BeenVerified, and most other major brokers. Your opt-out request may be acknowledged and then quietly ignored.
Combine that with the partial SSN exposure, and the calculus shifts. A Whitepages listing that reappears after three months is an annoyance. A Radaris profile that was supposed to be gone but still shows the first six digits of your Social Security number is a different category of problem.
DeleteMe includes Radaris in its coverage of 986 broker sites and re-scans quarterly — catching the profiles that Radaris fails to remove or quietly relists. Given Radaris’s compliance track record, automated re-checking matters more here than with most other brokers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who actually owns Radaris?
Radaris was founded by two Massachusetts-based brothers, Igor and Dmitry Lybarsky, who operated under the aliases “Gary Norden” and “Dan.” The company runs through Bitseller Expert Ltd, a Cyprus-registered offshore entity. A 2024 Krebs on Security investigation found that the person Radaris publicly listed as its CEO was a fabricated identity — confirmed by the founders’ own attorney.
Does Radaris expose Social Security numbers?
Partially. Radaris reports include the first six digits of your SSN. Since the last four digits are already widely available through other public records, this creates a realistic path to reconstructing a full nine-digit Social Security number.
What is Radaris’s BBB rating?
The Better Business Bureau assigns Radaris an F rating — the lowest possible — citing a pattern of ignored removal requests and unresolved consumer complaints.
Does Radaris actually remove your data when you opt out?
Not reliably. Radaris has a documented history of cosmetic removal — hiding data from one report view while leaving it visible through other search paths. Privacy advocates who have tested Radaris compliance report lower removal rates compared to most major data brokers.
Is Radaris connected to TruthFinder?
Yes. Radaris funnels customers to TruthFinder for detailed background check reports. TruthFinder was fined $5.8 million by the FTC in 2023 for deceptive accuracy claims and fake removal buttons.
Can I sue Radaris for publishing my information?
Lawsuits have been filed. A 2014 class-action resulted in a $7.5 million default judgment, though Radaris evaded collection and reclaimed its domain on a legal technicality. A 2023 Illinois class-action alleged Right of Publicity Act violations. A 2024 New Jersey lawsuit invoked Daniel’s Law, which protects law enforcement officers’ personal data. Results have been mixed due to Radaris’s offshore corporate structure.
The Bottom Line
Most data brokers are boring. They collect your data from public records, package it into profiles, sell access, and make opt-out a nuisance. Radaris does all of that — plus it exposes partial SSNs, operates through a Cyprus shell company, used a fabricated CEO as its public face, and carries the worst BBB rating in the industry. The company’s founders hid their own identities while selling yours.
If you’re going to tackle one data broker removal today, Radaris should be near the top of the list — not because it has the most traffic, but because the SSN exposure creates real downstream risk that goes beyond someone finding your phone number.
Do the manual opt-out, then verify it actually worked. If your profile reappears — or never fully disappeared — a dedicated removal service with ongoing monitoring is the realistic fix. Radaris’s track record on honoring removal requests makes self-service removal a gamble in a way that other brokers don’t.
Related: Learn how to opt out of the 15 biggest data brokers including Radaris, or see our full guide to removing your personal information from the internet. If you’re considering an automated service, read our DeleteMe review or find out what someone can do with your SSN.