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Google’s Updated Removal Tool to Update Results

By Brett Tabke on February 28, 2025

Google has rolled out a major update to its “Results about you” tool, making it easier to remove personal information from Search. While this is news for privacy freaks, it also has a few implications for SEOs who monitor SERPs for brand, reputation mgt, and indexation strategies.

Doxxing continues to pose a significant risk within SERPs, as the disclosure of personal info—such as addresses, phone numbers, and emails — can put individuals at trisk of harassment, stalking, or even more severe threats. Once such information is indexed by SEe’s, it can rapidly disseminate across the internet, making the process of removal urgent. For prominent figures, business proprietors, and SEOs tasked with safeguarding client reputations, the existence of doxxing material in search engine results pages (SERPs) can result in tangible repercussions, including identity theft and concerns regarding personal safety. While Google’s enhanced removal tool represents progress, serious ongoing vigilance is crucial to effectively mitigate these risks.

What’s New?

Google has simplified the process for requesting removals of personal data, including phone numbers, addresses, and emails. The tool now:

  • Allows users to pre-register their personal information for Google to scan proactively.
  •  Expands access beyond the Google app—users can now request removals directly from Google Search.
  •  Introduces a “remove this result” option via the three-dot menu in Search.
  •  Includes a new option to refresh outdated results, prompting Google to recrawl and update information from indexed pages.
  • These updates are rolling out in multiple countries, including the US, UK, Canada, and several others, with more regions to come.

SEO Takeaways:

🔹 SERP Monitoring & ORM – If clients or brands are concerned about sensitive data appearing in Search, this tool can be a useful part of a reputation mgt strategy. However, just because it goes missing in the SERPs, doesn’t guarantee it is gone from the web.

🔹 Indexation & Content Updates – The new “refresh outdated Search results” feature could be valuable for SEOs who have made content changes but are waiting on Google to recrawl. While this isn’t a full-fledged indexation request, it does provide another way to   nudge Google for index updates.

Final Thoughts

While this update is a win for user privacy, it also reinforces the need for ongoing SERP audits—because if your content isn’t appearing the way you expect, now there’s a faster way.

Published in Google