You had your phone number removed from a directory, deleted an old profile or persuaded a website to remove a photo. Yet Google still shows it. Start by opening the result: what has disappeared from the website may differ from what Google displays. This first check helps you choose the right next step instead of repeatedly submitting the same form.
First check: where is the information still visible?
Open the relevant page while signed out of the website and look for the exact information. A private browsing window can help you see what another visitor sees; it does not necessarily show what Google can crawl.
- The information is still on the page: removal at the source is not complete. Contact the publisher again or, if eligible, use Google's personal-information removal process.
- The page exists but the information is gone: the old search snippet may be lingering. The title and link may remain relevant after an update.
- The page or image is no longer accessible: record the result that remains so you can request an update.
Focus on the information you want removed. If a directory has deleted your phone number but retains a legitimate public listing, disappearance of the entire Google result is not necessarily the expected outcome.
Google explains the conditions for refreshing outdated content. This tool updates its results, not the source website. If you manage the website yourself, use the options for website owners instead.
Before the form: prepare a tracking note
Keep these five items in a private note. They will also help if you need to contact the publisher again:
- The result involved: copy its link from Google, not just the displayed title.
- The information to remove: for example, “old phone number in the snippet” or “portrait in Google Images”.
- What you found at the source: information still visible, removed, or page unavailable, with the date you checked.
- The publisher's response: retain any removal confirmation.
- The Google request: submission date, status and any reason given for denial.
Do not publish this note on a forum: it may collect precisely the details you want removed. Redact contact details and unrelated personal information from any screenshot you share to explain a problem.
Request an update to a page or snippet
Start with Google's official guidance on refreshing outdated content and follow its request link. You need a Google account. Choose the page option and enter the URL of the relevant result.
If the form asks what changed, identify the removed content rather than simply writing “delete my name”. Keep the confirmation and check the status before starting again. Labels may change; follow Google's current on-screen instructions.
Example: the phone number is gone, but the listing remains
Fictional example, not a customer case or a tested removal. Camille asked a directory to remove a personal phone number. The listing still describes Camille's work, but no longer contains the number. Google continues to show it below the title.
Camille records separately:
- the listing's link in search results;
- “phone number absent from the page, still visible in the snippet”;
- the check date and the directory's confirmation.
The goal is to update the snippet containing the phone number. If the result then remains without that number, this is not necessarily a failure. If the number appears on a second listing, however, that page needs a separate check.
Deleted photo: check the file as well as the page
A photo removed from an article may still be available through its direct link. Ask the publisher to check the image file, not just its display within the article. Google's image-removal guidance distinguishes removal from the source website and removal from search results.
When preparing an update request, distinguish three addresses:
- The page that contained the photo, such as an old profile.
- The image file, which may be hosted on another domain.
- The Google Images result link, which contains the references required by Google's suggested process.
On a computer, Google's official image procedure starts with right-clicking the thumbnail in Google Images and copying the link address. This is different from copying the image. Then choose the image request option and the input method matching the link you copied.
Do not paste the general address of your search instead of the specific result. If several pages use the same photo, record them: a request for one does not automatically address every other page.
Request denied or result still visible: what should you check?
Before submitting again, return to what you can observe:
- The content is still accessible: contact the source website. For eligible personal content, the dedicated removal process may also apply.
- The address does not match: compare the current result with the submitted URL, including parameters and capitalisation.
- Another copy appears: add that address to your tracking note and check its content.
- The page remains but the information is gone: establish what was actually removed before treating this as a denial or a failure.
Read the reason attached to the request's status in the tool. Waiting is not evidence of rejection. There is no guaranteed deadline for every affected result to disappear.
After the update: check other sources
Repeat the search that caused the problem and check the specific result, followed by any other addresses you recorded. For a photo, check Google Images too. Keep the date and your findings; a single search cannot establish that something has disappeared from the entire internet.
If you find other listings, our guides explain how to contact PagesBlanches and PagesJaunes or Societe.com and Pappers. These French directories each have their own process.
A Data Knight scan can help identify other exposures on the public web, with data brokers and in known breaches. The data-removal process then lets you address eligible requests. It does not guarantee an exhaustive inventory of copies or acceptance of a Google request.
Method: this guide was prepared with AI assistance using Google documentation consulted on 27 September 2026. The example and tracking note are educational; no real removal request or processing time was tested for this article.
See also: Remove personal information from Google · Right-to-be-forgotten delisting · Remove a social profile from search
