How do I make it stop? (ActBlue Solicitations)

[dickthegrouch]

One of the ways in which I am being lost as a donor is the extreme number of solicitations I am receiving from seemingly every campaign in the country.
There have been over 600 solicitations in the last 30 days.
I am not about to cede control of my personal information by changing my email address, or my phone number.
ActBlue needs to stop giving those out. As far as I know I never gave them permissioin to do so in the first place. Does anyone know how to ask them to stop?
What other strategies do people have for maintaining control?

[Biophilic]

1. Only strategy I've had over the last 6 months is to patiently unsubscribe.

Yes it’s it’s a pain in the neck but I’m down to just a couple a day. I sort of feel like it’s an online game. I don’t play them either.

[HoustonRex]

17. I have stopped donating

It's a shame that they are driving so many people off by giving your name out to every political candidate in the United States. Between email and text I get at least 20 requests a day. When I contacted act blue headquarters and complained about this they said there was nothing they could do because they don't sell your list they give it away only two candidates running for office. That is a lie because I get multiple requests from Gavin Newsom, Bernie Sanders and many more. I have written several letters to DNC chair, Kamala Harris, Jamie Raskin and others but NEVER get a single response. The Democrats lose because they don't know how to fight. Not getting donations is certainly not going to be of any help.

[Delphinus]

18. Welcome to DU!

I understand your frustration with multiple texts.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

19. Welcome to DU

[spooky3]

2. This won't help much, but I contacted Act Blue and told them I didn't like the dozens of solicitations

from all over the country and asked them to deny access to my info. They said that they were NOT permitted to deny access by law. ???? So the only thing I could do is to reply STOP to unwanted texts and unsubscribe to email, and to block senders via text or email. This has to be repeated obviously every single time some new Democrat requests their lists.

[Ms. Toad]

8. That's nonsense (not permitted by law to deny access). n/t

[crimycarny]

3. ActBlue has stopped me from donating due to this behavior

I have to imagine the number of people hesitating to donate to Dem candidates due to ActBlue's over-the-top BLASTS of emails and texts has to be a fairly large number. Why does ActBlue think people will welcome being begged for money with 100s of emails and texts?

I try to donate in other ways, like purchasing merchandise from a candidate's website, but I'm sure the amount the candidate raises from purchasing merchandise is less than a direct donation via ActBlue.

[Skittles]

5. I agree

I too have been turned off by the non-stop begging.

[cadoman]

15. I don't think it's ActBlue--it's the candidates/orgs/pacs

https://help.actblue.com/hc/en-us/articles/19342854603287-Does-ActBlue-share-my-personal-information-including-email-address-and-phone-number

They explicitly state:

"We never sell or share your personal information with anyone beyond the group you gave to, and ActBlue will never text you."

But of course, candidates sometimes run up debt and then sell their contact list to pay it. Harris had $20 million or so of debt and likely had to sell her list. It was regarded as a "high fatigue" list (people unfortunately donate less after a loss).

A smart, single buyer would be gracious and hold onto the list till the fatigue subsided, but given the quantity of missives recently, it seems the worst case has happened: it was sold to multiple entities and they all raced to use it while it still had value.

ActBlue gets caught in the crossfire of all this selling because everyone uses them to process payments.

[Basso8vb]

4. Don't worry, tRump is going after their tax exempt status.

So we'll have to find something else to shoot ourselves in the foot about.

[crimycarny]

6. Maybe ActBlue is doing the foot shooting?

ActBlue has gotten this type of criticism for a long time, and more and more donors are being turned off. Maybe, just maybe, ActBlue can address the issue, make it easier to opt out, and people will donate more often. Seems easy enough for me.

[Intractable]

7. I think it's more than just Act Blue. The candidates give the lists to each other.

It's like those charities that ask for "only $19 per month, just 63 cents per day."

Contribute to one of them, many will get your name and info.

[Ms. Toad]

9. From ActBlue

https://support.actblue.com/campaigns/faq/how-can-i-report-unwanted-communications-from-campaigns-or-organizations-or-a-potential-violation-of-actblues-terms-and-policies/

[ultralite001]

10. Popped this question into Microsoft CoPilot.

Here are the responses I received:

How do I make ActBlue stop emailing me?

You can unsubscribe from ActBlue emails by clicking the "unsubscribe" link at the bottom of any email you've received from them. If you're receiving text messages, replying "STOP" to the message should also opt you out.

ActBlue itself doesn't send emails on behalf of campaigns or organizations, but when you donate through their platform, your contact information may be shared with the group you contributed to. If you're still receiving unwanted emails, you might need to contact the campaign or organization directly. Their contact details are usually in the footer of their emails, or you can reach out to ActBlue for assistance here.

1support.actblue.com

How do I stop ActBlue from providing my information to organizations other than those I support?

ActBlue does not sell or share your contact information with third parties, except for the group you donated to or in certain legal circumstances. However, if you want to limit how your information is shared, ActBlue provides an option for donors to opt out of sharing their contact details with campaigns and organizations 2.

To do this, you can:

Visit your ActBlue Express Fundraising page.

Go to the fundraising form you used and select "Actions" → "Edit and preview".

Click the blue "Edit" button on the top left.

Select "Recipients" and scroll down to the "Email permissions pop-up" section.

Choose "Yes" to enable the opt-out option.

Click the green "Publish" button to save your changes.

If you're still receiving unwanted communications, you may need to contact the campaign or organization directly. You can also report potential violations to ActBlue by emailing [e-mail] with details of the issue.

1support.actblue.com
2www.donororganizerhub.org

Thanks for your post on DU. I learned something new.

[cadoman]

16. ActBlue is caught in the crossfire, but there's something they could do about it

As dedicated payment processor they should demand candidates funnel their email communications through them as well. This would allow ActBlue to optimize communication at relevant times and reduce donor fatigue.

[dickthegrouch]

11. If anyone thinks I'm going to that much trouble

With all 600 instances of harassment every month, they’re as insane as the MAGA crowd.

I am reporting as junk ALL solicitations. One click.

Unsubscribe is at least 2 every time I’ve used it.

To any existing campaign that I may ever have given information or money to:
DO NOT SHARE MY INFORMATION WITH ANY OTHER CAMPAIGN.

[Ms. Toad]

13. You know posting here isn't effective notice,

Any more than posting "I do not give my permission to use my images" is on facebook, right?

[dickthegrouch]

14. It's in a public place

Probably more effective than those ridiculous notices in the newspaper.
But, yes, I don’t have much confidence that anyone will pay any attention.
The status quo is far too comfortable and convenient for the harassers.

[dickthegrouch]

12. Any organization that has any personal data on at least 50,000 California residents is subject to CCPA

Ignorance of the law is not a defense.

https://secureframe.com/blog/ccpa-exemptions

[NowsTheTime]

20. Whatever has led to the Excessive Solicitations, probably helped some voters Decide To Not Vote Blue!

...there I said it....they may have helped undecided voters decide to stay home, or worse