You Can Now Easily Remove Personal Info From Google Search Results

Imagine spotting your personal information in the Google Search results. If that sounds frustrating and scary, you are among us. Google seems aware of that, which is why it announced the “Results about you” tool. This tool detects users’ personal information such as addresses and phone numbers, that appear in the Google Search results. Well, the good news is that the company has updated it, making it even easier for users to sign up and request removals of personal information directly from the Google Search page.

Removing your personal information from the Google Search results is even easier now

Signing up for the “Results about you” tool allows you to provide Google with the name, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses that you want it to scan for. Google says such data “is not shared or used to personalize your experience across other Google products.”

Now, every time Google’s system detects your data in the Search results, it’ll notify you, allowing you to make a removal request. For the uninitiated, Google had this tool for a long time now. However, it was found in the History settings, under Google user accounts, while using the Google app on mobile web and desktop.

The company also notes that the “Results about you” tool is currently only available in a few countries, including the US, UK, Ireland, Australia, Canada, South Africa, Brazil, Mexico, Spain, France, Sweden, Thailand, India, and Indonesia. However, it plans to further expand the updated tool to more countries down the line.

Here’s how to remove your personal information

First of all, you have to click on the three-dot menu next to the Google Search results. Next, you’ll see a “remove this result” option. You can click the option to quickly remove your personal information from the Search results. Besides, you will also get an idea of what sort of information is eligible for removal.

Google currently offers deletion requests for three types of information from the Google Search results. The first type is personal information or doxing content. Secondly, you can request legal removal of illegal content that qualifies for copyright infringement and child abuse. Finally, you can make a removal request for the outdated Search results.

The last option is the new one and comes in handy in situations where you had your information updated, corrected, or removed from a website, but the Search results don’t reflect the changes. When you choose that option, Google prompts recrawling the website that has your info and further updates it. Moreover, you should know that the company is also working on “AI mode” for Google Search.