Privacy tool that removes you from Google can help stop people stealing your data

Google has a privacy tool that shows sensitive personal information about you and allows you to remove it.

Data brokers will collect and sell personal information such as your name, home address, phone number and email, often selling this data very cheaply to anyone who wants it.

Buyers can include telemarketers, scammers, identity thieves, or even people who want to track or harass someone.

Because this information can appear online and in search engines, it can put your privacy and safety at risk.

To help with this problem, Google offers a free tool called 'results about you'. However, many people don’t know it exists.

The tool helps you remove links from Google Search that show sensitive personal information about you.

Google constantly scans websites to build its search results, which can include information gathered by data brokers.

Google's 'results about you' tool allows you to check how your data shows up in search results (Getty Stock Images)

And so the tool allows you to ask Google to remove search results that reveal things like your phone number, address, or email.

Once you set it up, Google can also send alerts when it finds your personal details appearing in search results.

You can then review the page and request removal if needed. In some places, it can also flag highly sensitive details like passport or ID numbers.

What to know about Google's results about you

Notably, the tool does not delete your information from the internet itself. It only removes the link from Google Search. Also, the information may still exist on the original website.

But by removing it from Google, it much harder for most people to find.

Google's privacy tool is free to use (Google)

"If very dedicated people want to find you, they will," Thorin Klosowski, the security and privacy activist at the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), told the BBC.

"But Google is so ubiquitous and it is so easy to use, it's pretty helpful to get rid of the worst, most obvious stuff.

"You're peeling off the first layer of information that's easy to find."

How to find your personal data with Google's results about you

• Go to the results about you page through the a web browser or the Google app.
• Enter your name and personal information you want Google to search for.
• You can include details such as nicknames or maiden names, phone numbers, home addresses and email addresses

Set Up Notifications

• Enable notifications to get alerts if Google finds your personal information in search results.
• Notifications can be sent through email or the Google app.
• You’ll also receive alerts when new results appear that match your information.

Review Results

• Go to the 'to review' tab on the results about you page.
• Check which websites contain your personal details.
• Click on a result to see more information about the page and the data shown.

Request Removal

• Select a result and choose 'request to remove'.
• Google will review the request and email you updates.
• Some public-interest pages (e.g., government or news sites) may not be removable.