If you find your personal information online, like your phone number, address, or email, Google just made it easier to make sure it doesn’t show up again.
Several years ago, Google introduced a “Results about you” tool that lets you track your personal information online and remove it from search results. It wasn’t easy to find this tool, though, because you had to dig deep into the settings menu to see it.
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Now, you can request removal straight from Google Search, and the whole process works surprisingly quickly. Here’s how to do it.
How to remove your information from Google Search
Search Google for your contact info. For example, using your phone number as your search query could turn up many people search site results. When you see a result with your personal information, click the three dots next to it, and you’ll see a menu with information about the link, including a “Remove result” button. Choose that, and you’ll see different options for why you want it removed.
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At the top is “It shows my personal information and I don’t want it here.” Choosing that option sends the page to Google for review. If Google decides it violates policy, it will be removed from search — sometimes in minutes.
The original site will still be there but it won’t turn up in Search, which will make it harder for others to find. Most online directory sites have options to request the removal of your information. That’s something you’ll want to take advantage of, as information like this is increasingly being used in scams.
When I tried Google’s removal tool for myself, I found the process simple. I searched for my name, found a site that listed my information, and submitted a removal request. Google sent an email to confirm my request and explained that it usually takes a few days to make sure the request meets Google’s policy requirements for removal.
My request was approved four minutes later.
“Within a few hours,” the follow up email explained, “the URL for this result will no longer be visible when people look up your name on Search.”
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The three-dot menu also has options to remove illegal content like phishing, violence, or explicit content and to refresh outdated search results (that’s for when you’ve requested information removal and Google is still indexing an old page).
Sign up for proactive monitoring
Google also made it easier for you to sign up for proactive monitoring from Results about you. Visit the hub, sign in with your Google account, and you’ll be able to receive a notice when your personal information shows up online. Previously, the page to sign up and the page to see where your information was found were in different locations.
