Have you ever come across something about yourself that was private or secret in a search engine result? That would not only be embarrassing, but it might also raise security risks like identity theft.
Google is trying to make it less complicated for you to locate and delete any personal information that appears in a search now. The search engine giant highlighted new privacy features and tools in a blog post earlier this week in an effort to help you safeguard your personal information.
The first thing on the list is a new dashboard for an existing feature called 'Results about you'. This function, which was introduced in 2022, allows you to keep track of any personal information that appears in a search result so that you can ask Google to delete it.
With the help of a recent upgrade, the 'Results about you' dashboard will not only assist you in finding those particulars but also enable you to ask for their removal using the same tool. The function will also notify you if fresh information starts to show up in open search results.
You may access the dashboard by visiting the Results about your website on the web or by clicking your account photo in the Google mobile app and choosing Results about you. Run a name search on Google from there. For the purpose of limiting the results, you might need to include your city and state.
If a search generates your email address, phone number, or home address, you can request that Google remove the information by clicking or touching the three-dot icon and selecting Remove result. Next, specify why you want the data erased. Complete the remaining steps before submitting the request to Google.
In response, the company will analyse your request to see if it fits the policy standards for removal, which could take a few days. If your request gets approved, Google will eliminate the specific result you specified. You can also check on your requests at the dashboard, which displays all requests, including those in process, accepted, denied, and undone.
However, keep in mind that deleting items from a Google search does not actually remove the content. By going directly to the source website or employing a different search engine, people might still be able to locate it.
