You can request removal of search results when they contain your personal email address, phone number, or home address, directly on the search results page.
Important: This feature is available to users over the age of 18 in the US only. To request removal of a result that shows contact info for a person under the age of 18, use the detailed removal request form.
How to request removal of results with personal contact info
Step 1: Flag URLs on Google Search
From Google Search
- Log in with your Google Account.
- You can open Google on a desktop or mobile browser, whichever you prefer.
- You’ll get an update on the status of your requests through the email address associated with your account.
- If you want to request removal of a result on behalf of someone else, or if you don’t want to log in, you can use the detailed removal request form instead.
- Go to Google Search.
- Search for your name.
- To find results that show your personal contact info, you can search for your name and your home city, or your name and your home address.
- On the result that has your email address, phone number, or home address, click More
.
- At the bottom, click Remove result.
- Select It shows my personal contact info.
- Go through the reporting flow.
- Submit your request.
- After you submit your request, you can select I’m done.
To check your submitted removal request details, including the status of your request(s), select Go to removal requests to visit the “Results about you” page.
From a webpage through the Google app
You can submit a request directly from any webpage through your Google app.
- On your Google app, navigate to the webpage that shows your personal contact info and that you want to remove from Google Search.
- If you want to request removal of a result on behalf of someone else, you can use the detailed removal request form instead.
- At the top, select Secure connection
.
- Select Remove result.
- Select It shows my personal contact info.
- Go through the reporting flow.
- Submit your request.
- After you submit your request, you can select I’m done.
- To check your submitted removal request details, including the status of your request(s), select Go to removal requests to visit the “Results about you” page.
Tip: Make sure to enter your name and the personal contact info shown on the result page exactly as they appear on the result. For example, if the result shows your nickname, enter your nickname in the form. If the result shows an old home address, enter the old home address in the form.
If the result shows more than one type of contact info, like your phone number and your home address, you only need to include one type of contact info in your request form. If it shows more than one type of contact info, you don't need to submit multiple removal requests for the same URL.
Step 2: Check for email confirmation
Within the next couple of hours, you should receive an email confirmation that your request was already submitted.
Step 3: Monitor the status of your requests
- On your computer, go to google.com.
- At the top right, click your Profile picture or initial
Manage your Google Account.
- On the left, click Data & privacy.
- Scroll to “History settings”
select My Activity.
- On the left, select Other activity.
- Scroll to “Results about you”
select Manage results about you.
In the Google app
- On your Android phone or tablet, open the Google app
.
- At the top right, tap your Profile picture or initial.
- Select Results about you.
In a browser
- On your Android phone or tablet, go to google.com.
- At the top right, tap your Profile picture or initial
Manage your Google Account.
- At the top, select Data & privacy.
- Scroll to “History settings”
tap My Activity.
- At the top left, tap Menu
Other activity.
- Scroll to “Results about you”
select Manage results about you.
In the Google app
- On your iPhone or iPad, open the Google app
.
- At the top right, tap your Profile picture or initial.
- Select Results about you.
In a browser
- On your iPhone or iPad, go to google.com.
- At the top right, tap your Profile picture or initial
Manage your Google Account.
- At the top, select Data & privacy.
- Scroll to “History settings”
tap My Activity.
- At the top left, tap Menu
Other activity.
- Scroll to “Results about you”
select Manage results about you.
You can check the statuses of all the requests you submitted through the “Remove result” button:
- In progress
- Approved
- Denied
- Undone
After you click on a specific request, you can check details like the:
- Link to the page you flagged
- Submission day and time
- Request ID
- Contact info you flagged on the page
In “Results about you,” the decision is reflected after your request was analyzed. For denied requests, you can check why it's denied and learn about any next steps you can take to remove your contact info.
Tip: There may be a delay between when a request is approved and the result is removed from search results. You can opt to check if your info is already removed within a few hours after it has been approved.
Policy requirements for removal requests
After you submit a request, Google will review it to make sure it meets policy requirements for removal. Requests must meet the following policy requirements:
- The contact information displayed on the result has to be your personal, not professional, information. To request to remove professional information that’s been posted with the intent to harm you, use the detailed request form.
- As Google Search seeks to provide users with useful info, it won’t remove info that’s valuable to the public. You can request removal through the detailed removal request form if your personal contact info is shared on a:
- Government or educational institution website
- Newspaper with the intent to harm you
- You don’t control the information yourself. This means contact information you’re able to remove from the internet yourself, like info on a social media page or a personal blog that you own.
FAQ
What does Google do with the data you provide in your removal requests?
What happens to URLs after they’re approved for removal?
When URLs are approved for removal through “Remove result,” one of the following will happen:
- The URL won't appear for any search query. This is what happens most of the time.
- The URL won't appear for search queries that contain your name.
Tip: This is called query-based removal. This can happen when the policy violating information on a page is accompanied by content that is considered valuable to the public or has contact info that belongs to other individuals or businesses.
When you remove a result that shows your personal contact info from Google Search, it doesn’t mean that the info is gone from the internet. Whether your request is approved or denied, the info still exists on the source web page. To remove the info from the source, contact the website’s owner.
What happens if my request is denied?
If your request is denied, you’ll receive an email notification. On the “Results about you” page, you’ll find the reason why your request wasn’t approved.
You can check the next steps for how to:
- Remove the info from the source web page
- Re-submit a request through an alternative removal request form
What type of requests does Google approve through Remove result?
Your personal contact info, which includes your phone number, your home address, and your email address. If a search result shows any of these info types, you can request to have it removed from Google Search through “Remove result.”
Make sure that the info you provide on your request form matches the info found on the source web page. This includes your name and one piece of your personal contact info found on the flagged result’s web page.
To preserve access to info that’s valuable to the public, Google sometimes denies requests. For example, Google won’t remove results for web pages that are owned by educational or government institutions, or by newspapers. These websites contain info that’s valuable to the public.
If you’re comfortable, you can contact the website owner to request that they remove your personal contact info from the source web page. This removes the info from the web at its source, which in turn removes it from Google Search results. Learn how to contact a website’s owner.
What other types of info can I remove from Google Search?
What if I have a legal removal request?
What happens if I change my mind about removing a result?
If your request to remove is approved and then you'd like the result to reappear in search results, you can select Undo in “Results about you” to undo your removal request. This will make it possible for the URL to appear in search results again.
Tip: This doesn't guarantee that the page will reappear for you or others in search results. If someone else requests removal of the same URL and Google approves their request, Google won’t be able to show the URL in search results again even if you undo your own removal request.