Is Your Personal Information on the Internet? Here's How to Remove It From Google Search Results. Google now offers a "remove this result" feature.

By Madeline Garfinkle

Key Takeaways

  • You can now request to have your sensitive personal information removed from appearing in Google search results.
  • The removal may not scrub it from the web entirely, though.

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

If you've ever Googled yourself, it can be scary to see how much the web knows about you — and how hard it is to scrub the information.

Now, Google is making it a little easier. The company launched a "remove this result" feature, currently in Beta mode, which allows users to file a request to eliminate phone numbers, emails, and home addresses from appearing in Google Search results.

To remove your personal information from Google search results:

  • Search for your name, and click the three vertical dots next to a relevant result/website.
  • Select "remove this result" and choose the appropriate removal reason.
  • Log into your Google account, enter the relevant information, and click "send."

You'll receive a removal decision via email after a few days.

If you need to remove personal information beyond phone numbers, email addresses, and home addresses, choose the "content contains your personal information" option. There, you can have sensitive data, such as Social Security and bank account numbers, removed — as well as images of signatures, pictures of an ID, and more.

To track your request, access the "data & privacy" settings within your Google Account, scroll down to "my activity," then press the three dots in the search bar and select "other activity." From there, you can manage results related to you and check the status of your request.

You can also submit a request, here.

However, an approved removal request doesn't mean it's gone from the Internet or the specific website where it was originally posted, CNBC added. It will just remove it from appearing in Google results.

The "remove this result" tool is part of Google's "results about you" feature that launched last year.

Madeline Garfinkle

News Writer

Madeline Garfinkle is a News Writer at Entrepreneur.com. She is a graduate from Syracuse University, and received an MFA from Columbia University. 

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Business News

AI Could Cause 99% of All Workers to Be Unemployed in the Next Five Years, Says Computer Science Professor

Professor Roman Yampolskiy predicted that artificial general intelligence would be developed and used by 2030, leading to mass automation.

Business News

Mark Zuckerberg 'Insisted' Executives Join Him For a MMA Training Session, According to Meta's Ex-President of Global Affairs

Nick Clegg, Meta's former president of global affairs, says in a new book that he once had to get on the mat with a coworker.

Business News

United Airlines Says It Is Adding Extra Flights in Case Spirit 'Suddenly Goes Out of Business'

Rival airlines, including United and Frontier, are adding new routes as Spirit cuts 12 cities from its schedule.

Buying / Investing in Business

Big Investors Are Betting on This 'Unlisted' Stock

You can join them as an early-stage investor as this company disrupts a $1.3T market.