There are two types of people in the world…

1. People who Google themselves. They might do this because they have a reputation to maintain professionally, or have a public presence of some sorts that they want to monitor (setting up Google Alerts is great for this). Alternatively, these people might just occasionally Google their own name just for fun - I mean this could finally be the year that your 2008 Taylor Swift dance video might have start trending on YouTube (apologies to future employers)?!

2. People who don’t Google themselves. These people are not particularly interested or concerned with the digital footprints they leave in their wake, as they go about living their day-to-day lives. These people we can personally relate to.

Whichever camp you sit in, Google’s latest update might of interest.

Google introduces ‘results about you’ in Chrome app

In May 2022, Google announced a new tool to streamline the process of removing Search results that contain your personal information. This feature has now begun rolling out.

For some, as you open your phone to Google what the weather is going to be like today, you’ll now be able to click on your avatar (top right corner if you’re logged in) and select ‘Results about you’ in the menu.

This is where you can request to have results removed that contain information you’d rather not have blasted all over the internet.

What information can you remove?

This feature now allows you to request to remove any information that is personally identifiable. This includes…

• Bank account info

• Government numbers like Social Security in the US

• Credit card numbers

• Images of handwritten signatures

• Images of ID documents

• Highly personal/official records like medical records

• Personal contact info like address or phone number

• Confidential login credentials

How do I remove a result?

If you find something while browsing on Chrome, click on the three-dot overflow menu that appears in the top-right corner of each result.

The existing ‘about this result’ panel opens with a new “Remove result” option appearing at the bottom of your screen. 

Once you’ve followed this process, you can then follow the progress of the removal in your personal ‘Results about you’ feed. You’ll be able to see if the results is ‘in progress’ or ‘approved’.

What does Google say about removing results?

Google previously explained…

“It’s important to note that when we receive removal requests, we will evaluate all content on the web page to ensure that we’re not limiting the availability of other information that is broadly useful, for instance in news articles. And of course, removing contact information from Google Search doesn’t remove it from the web, which is why you may wish to contact the hosting site directly, if you’re comfortable doing so.”

So the next time you’re Googling yourself and find something you want to remove, now you know how.

And if you don’t Google yourself, just know that everyone is enjoying your 2008 dance video you don’t think anyone can find.