This new option lets people request that their phone numbers, addresses and email addresses be removed.
Google recently released an official blog in which it announced that its users will be able to request that more personal information be removed from search results.
This will include the removal of phone numbers, physical addresses and email addresses.
The blog post explained that people will be able to request that their personal information be removed from their search results. This isn’t the first move of this nature that the tech giant has made. That said, it expands on the features already available to users concerned about their privacy online.
Previous features allowed users to request that their bank account and credit card numbers be removed. The same could be said about their medical records, handwritten signatures, government ID data, and any content of an explicit or lewd personal nature.
Google’s blog post also provided instructions users can use to remove their personal information.
The post stated that while there are advantages to sharing some of the data, but that this shouldn’t occur at the cost of the security of the user’s searches. The expansion to the feature and policy makes it possible for users to take more steps regarding the data that they want to keep private.
Google is “empowering people with the tools they need to protect themselves and keep their personally identifiable information private,” according to Global Policy Lead for Search, Michelle Chang.
To use this feature, users will need to head to a Google page with the title “Remove select personally identifiable info (PII) or doxxing content from Google Search.” From there, they must click the “Start Removal Request” blue button. This leads users to a form that they can complete to choose the information they want removed from their search results. It also provides the opportunity to say whether the website owner has already been contacted with the request.
Once that form is submitted, another form will open, allowing the user to identify URLs, upload screenshots, and provide any additional screenshots that will make it possible for Google to make the necessary decisions in the user’s unique case. At the end of the form, the “submit” button is clicked, and an email is automatically issued confirming that the personal information removal has been received.
