You could also easily opt out with the single entity that shipped that information.

Yes, but getting an unlisted number was considered weird and against the norm even if possible. Even in the early 2000s when I dropped my landline, my parents were aghast - "if you do that, you won't be in the phone book! How will anyone get in contact with you?"

And you often had to pay for the privilege... A dollar a month for them to not put your name and number in the phonebook.

Yeah and back then it wasn't used as a sort of UUID to track every single thing you do in your life... Different times

You ever had a bump in the night my guy?

Or a stalker?