Google's Removal Policies Explained: What Google Will and Will Not Take Down

Why this matters

Many people's first instinct when they find something negative is to ask Google to remove it. That is understandable. Google is where people see it. But Google's removal policies are narrower than most people expect, and filing the wrong request wastes time and leads to frustration.

Knowing exactly what Google covers lets you do two things. File the requests that have a real chance, and quickly move to other tools, like contacting the source or building better pages, for everything else.

The key idea: Google removes from Google, not from the web

Google is a search engine. It can stop showing a link in its results, but it cannot delete a page from someone else's website. Google says this directly in its help pages: even after a removal, the content may still exist and be findable through links, social media, or other search engines.

That is why the source matters. If the website owner removes or changes the page, the fix applies everywhere. If only Google removes the link, other search engines and direct links may still show it.

Personal information Google may remove

Google's personal information policy covers several categories. According to Google Search Help, you can ask for removal of results that show:

Google also handles doxxing, which it describes as content that shares your personal information along with explicit or implicit threats or calls to harass you, or a significant amount of aggregated personal information without a legitimate purpose.

When reviewing requests, Google says it considers factors such as public interest. A removal can be full, meaning the URL no longer appears in Google Search, or partial, meaning it will not appear for searches that include your name but might for other searches.

• Contact details: your home address, phone number, or email
• Confidential government IDs: such as Social Security or tax ID numbers
• Financial information: bank account or credit card numbers
• Images of your signature or ID
• Private records: such as medical records
• Confidential login credentials: usernames and passwords

The "Results about you" tool

For contact details specifically, Google offers a tool called "Results about you." You can use it to find search results that show your home address, phone number, or email, request their removal, and set up notifications for new results that appear later.

This is one of the most practical tools available for privacy, especially for people-search and data broker listings. It does not handle reviews, news stories, or opinions. Our series on privacy and people-search sites covers it in more detail.

Sites that charge to remove content

Google has a specific policy for what it calls exploitative removal practices. It will consider removing a result if all three of these are true:

1. You are a subject of the content at the URL. 2. The website is not a business review site. 3. The website requires payment, to the site or to another party, to have the content removed.

This policy matters for mugshot sites and certain gripe sites that ask for money to take content down. It does not apply to business review platforms. Our guide to complaint and gripe sites explains how this plays out.

Intimate and explicit images

Google has policies for removing nonconsensual explicit or intimate images, sexually explicit deepfakes or fake images, and certain explicit content that appears in searches for your name. These requests are handled seriously and quickly. If someone is threatening to share intimate images, it may also be a crime, and the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative runs a crisis helpline for people in that situation.

Outdated content: the refresh tool

If a page has changed or been deleted but Google still shows the old title, snippet, or link, the refresh outdated content tool lets you ask Google to update its copy. It only helps when the live page no longer contains the old information. See outdated information about you online for how to use it.

Legal removal requests

Separately from its own policies, Google accepts legal removal requests through its Legal Help Center. These cover things like:

Google reviews these requests under the relevant law and may decline. If you are considering a defamation claim, see our defamation basics guide and talk to a lawyer.

• Court orders, for example a ruling that specific content is defamatory
• Copyright, if someone posted your photos or writing without permission
• Local laws in specific countries, such as the right to be forgotten in the European Union, which has no direct equivalent in the United States

What Google generally will not remove

This is the part that disappoints people, but it is better to know it up front. Under its personal content policies, Google generally will not remove:

For those, the realistic options are asking the source to update or remove the content, responding where appropriate, and adding accurate pages about you. See how to deal with a negative result.

• An accurate news article about you
• A negative review of you or your business that does not break the review platform's rules
• Someone's opinion of you, even a harsh one
• Public records like court filings, unless they include specific categories like ID numbers
• Your own old posts on someone else's site, unless they contain covered information

Reviews on Google Maps and Business Profiles

Reviews on Google Maps follow a different set of rules: Google's Maps user contributed content policy. That policy prohibits things like fake engagement, conflicts of interest, off-topic content, harassment, and hate speech. Business owners can report reviews that break those rules from their Business Profile. Google does not remove reviews simply because they are negative.

Our guide on bad reviews about you personally walks through reporting and responding to reviews.

Tips for a request that gets a fair review

If a request is declined, check whether another policy fits better. If none fit, focus on the source and on building better pages.

• Use the exact URL. Google reviews only the URLs you submit, so list each page separately.
• Pick the right policy. A request filed under the wrong policy is more likely to be declined.
• Be brief and clear. Explain in a sentence or two how the content fits the policy.
• Include screenshots where the form asks. Google's help pages suggest you can crop them to show only what is needed.
• Keep a record of what you submitted and when.

Common questions

Sources

1. Remove my private info from Google Search (Google Search Help)
2. Remove content about you on exploitative sites that try to charge for removal (Google Search Help)
3. Refresh outdated content (Google Search Help)
4. Report Content for Legal Reasons (Google Legal Help)
5. Maps user contributed content policy (Google Maps Help)
6. Crisis Helpline (Cyber Civil Rights Initiative)