What is a data aggregator?
Definition
A data aggregator is a company that collects personal or financial data from many sources and combines it into one place, either to pass to another business or to sell. The term is used in banking and in data brokering.
- Category
- Data
- Also called
- data aggregation company, aggregator
- Last updated
Reviewed by Anthon Wansland
Head of Product & Co-Founder
Serus is a privacy company with paid tools to find and remove your personal data. This page is free and based on official sources.
Sources checked: consumerfinance.gov
Last verified against the official page:
"Data aggregator" means a few different things depending on who is talking, which is why it is worth knowing which one you are dealing with.
In banking
In US consumer finance, the CFPB's open banking rule (Section 1033) defines a data aggregator as a person that a third party retains to help it access covered data. In plain terms, when you link a budgeting or payment app to your bank account, an aggregator often sits in the middle, pulling your account data from the bank and passing it to the app. Earlier CFPB documents describe aggregators as entities that support data recipients and data providers in enabling consumer-authorized access to information. The CFPB has noted that most authorized data access runs through data aggregators.
In data brokering
Outside banking, people use the word for companies that gather information from public records, websites, purchases and other sources, merge it into profiles and sell or license it. That is what data brokers and people-search sites do. See our entries on data brokers and data aggregation.
Why it matters
An aggregator that holds your bank login or account history holds sensitive information, so it matters which apps you connect and what you let them access. An aggregator that builds a profile of you from scattered records can put your address, phone number and relatives on one page, which is exactly what makes doxxing and scam targeting easier.
Aggregator vs. related terms
- Data broker: a company that sells or licenses personal data. Many data brokers aggregate, but a banking aggregator moves data you authorized rather than selling profiles.
- Credit reporting company: a company that compiles credit files and is covered by the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The CFPB lists it as a distinct key term.
How to protect yourself
- 1
Check which apps are connected to your bank
Review the connected-apps or data-sharing settings in your bank account and your finance apps. Disconnect anything you no longer use.
- 2
Read what an app asks to access before you link an account
Look at which accounts and which kinds of data it requests, and who the app says it shares data with.
- 3
Find out where your details are listed
Search your name on people-search sites and use each site's opt-out. Listings can reappear. Serus finds where your address and phone number are listed and removes them.
See it in action
See where your personal data is exposed
Serus finds it on data brokers and people-search sites and removes it.
Frequently asked
Is a data aggregator the same as a data broker?
Not always. Both combine data from many sources. A banking aggregator moves data you authorized to an app. A data broker typically sells or licenses profiles, often without a direct relationship with you.
Are data aggregators legal?
Yes, but rules vary by country and by what kind of data is involved. In the US, credit reporting companies, for example, are covered by the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
How do I stop a data aggregator listing me?
For people-search and broker-style aggregators, use each site's opt-out process. For a bank-linked aggregator, disconnect the app in your bank or app settings.
Sources
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