Google recently updated its “Results About You” tool, which has proven to be an eye-opening experience for many users. The tool revealed personal information such as home addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses on various people-search websites. It even uncovered details like birth dates and relatives’ names, despite previous requests for removal from some databases.
Google regularly sends emails alerting users to more exposed data, indicating that this is a widespread issue. Why should you care about your personal information being available online? Accessible personal data can expose you to junk mail, harassment, or even violence.
Attackers use these databases to target individuals, according to cybersecurity firm Recorded Future. Even regular citizens have become victims of doxxing, which is the malicious sharing of personal information. If you’ve ever gotten a speeding ticket, bought a home, answered a census survey, or registered to vote, your details are now part of public record.
Data brokers scrape these records, along with social media profiles, and package the data as dossiers on millions of individuals. There are hundreds of people-search services, and while most offer an opt-out process, the data can reappear when companies refresh their databases. That’s why you might want to enlist a service designed to delete your data from the internet.
To see what’s out there, start by Googling your name and location. You might find multiple profiles with your personal data on people-search websites such as Spokeo or Whitepages. Google offers a free scanner to help: Go to myactivity.google.com and under Other activity, click.
Here, you can review search results where your personal information appears and request Google to remove the result. However, this tool only shows search results.
Managing online footprints effectively
To cover your bases, you also need to go to the data brokers directly. If you prefer to opt out yourself, set aside a weekend. People-search sites have different removal processes, and some might request personal data to remove your listing.
Only provide information they already have, and if you must upload a photo ID, mask the license number and your photo. Use a temporary email address. Alternatively, you can pay for a service to do the legwork.
DeleteMe, which launched in 2021, has a budget-friendly $4-a-month plan covering more than 300 sites. For those needing more extensive cleaning, services can cost up to $25 a month. When you opt out of a people-search site, your data might not disappear immediately.
For California residents, removal must happen within 45 days. Other states have varied rules, and removals could take longer or, in rare cases, not happen at all. These companies might recollect the same data from public sources or third parties, so you’re never completely erased.
You should scan the web a few times a year and repeat the process, or pay a service to keep running in the background. To further minimize your online footprint, enable privacy settings on your phone, avoid posting publicly on social media, and use burner email addresses and phone numbers. Using a fake birthday might also help, but you need to remember it.
Google’s tool is a significant step in reclaiming digital privacy, but it’s just one piece of a much larger puzzle. Whether you go DIY or enlist a service, managing your online footprint is now a recurring task in the modern age.
Noah Nguyen is a multi-talented developer who brings a unique perspective to his craft. Initially a creative writing professor, he turned to Dev work for the ability to work remotely. He now lives in Seattle, spending time hiking and drinking craft beer with his fiancee.
