How to Fill Out and Submit a Content Removal Form

Google’s content removal forms live in two places: the Legal Help Troubleshooter at support.google.com/legal/troubleshooter/1114905 handles copyright, court orders, trademark, defamation, and related legal issues, while a separate form at support.google.com/websearch/answer/9673730 handles exposed personal information. Picking the right form is the first real step, because each one asks for different documentation and routes your request to a different review team.¹²

Pick the Form That Matches Your Reason

Google splits requests into two tracks. Policy-based removals cover personal data exposure and non-consensual intimate images. Legal removals cover copyright, court orders, trademark, counterfeit goods, defamation, and FOSTA-SESTA violations. Start on the wrong track and you’ll either be redirected or denied outright.

The Legal Help Troubleshooter walks you through these categories:¹

Copyright, when someone is using your copyrighted work without permission.
Counter notice, when your own content was removed on a copyright complaint and you want it reinstated.
Circumvention, when a tool bypasses your copyrighted technological protection.
Trademark, when someone uses your mark in a way likely to cause confusion.
Counterfeit, when a page sells or promotes counterfeit goods.
Court order, when a judge has determined specific content is unlawful.
Defamation, when content makes false statements that damage your reputation or your business’s.
FOSTA-SESTA, for content that violates online sex trafficking laws or California’s Safe at Home program.

For exposed phone numbers, home addresses, government IDs, bank account numbers, login credentials, or medical records, use the personal information form instead.² Non-consensual intimate imagery has its own dedicated form.³

Filling Out the Personal Information Form

Open the personal info removal form and identify the type of data at issue: contact details, government ID numbers, financial account numbers, login credentials, or medical records. The form then asks you to list the exact URLs where your information appears and to attach screenshots showing where on each page the data is visible. Screenshots help reviewers locate the content fast. Without them, the review takes longer or gets denied.²

The same form handles doxxing. To qualify, the page needs to pair your personal information with threats (explicit or implicit), or publish a large amount of aggregated data about you without a legitimate purpose. Google may decline doxxing requests if the content is newsworthy or serves the public interest.²

If you’d rather have Google watch for your information proactively, turn on the “Results about you” feature. Once set up, it checks search results for matches to the personal details you’ve registered and notifies you when something turns up. You can submit removal requests directly from the same dashboard and track their status.⁴

Approvals come in two forms. Usually the URL is removed entirely and stops appearing for any query. In other cases Google applies a query-based removal: the page won’t surface when someone searches your name, but it may still appear for unrelated searches. That narrower outcome happens when the page also contains material Google treats as valuable to the public or information about other people. Pages owned by government institutions, educational organizations, or online newspapers are generally off limits even when they list your contact information.⁴

Filling Out a Copyright Takedown

In the Legal Help Troubleshooter, choose the Google product where the infringing content appears (typically Google Search), then select Copyright under the legal reasons menu. The form asks you to:¹

Confirm you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the owner’s behalf.
Identify the type of work (image, video, or other).
Describe the original copyrighted material.
Provide proof of ownership, such as a registration number, creation date, or link to the original work.
List the exact URLs of every infringing page.

File a separate report for each Google product. One submission does not cover both Google Search and YouTube.¹

Filling Out a Court Order Removal

Google accepts only valid court orders signed by a judge. The form asks for a copy of the order, the URL of each page containing the unlawful content, the exact text or material on each URL that violates the order, and the specific section of the order that mandates removal.⁵

Google may act voluntarily when the order identifies specific URLs and indicates the content violates the law, and sometimes removes content in response to orders not directed at Google itself, out of deference to the court. An order finding content false can also support a separate removal request in jurisdictions beyond the original court’s reach.⁵⁶

Filling Out a Non-Consensual Intimate Imagery Request

Use the dedicated form for images or videos showing you nude, in a sexual act, or in an intimate state that were shared without your consent. The policy also covers cases where you consented to the imagery itself but not to its distribution online. You are not eligible if you are currently being paid to commercialize the content.³⁷

The form asks for the URLs where the images appear and supporting details showing the content meets Google’s criteria. Many states have laws covering non-consensual intimate imagery, and Google’s help pages suggest consulting a lawyer about your rights in your jurisdiction.

Removing an Outdated Snippet or Cached Page

If a page has already been deleted or changed but Google’s results still show the old version, use the Refresh Outdated Content tool at search.google.com/search-console/remove-outdated-content. This one is for pages you don’t own.⁸

Enter the URL of the page or image, then click Submit. If the page still exists at that address, Google will ask you to provide one or two words that appeared in the old snippet but no longer appear on the live page. Processing takes a few days. Your status at the bottom of the tool page will read Pending, Approved, Denied, Expired, or Cancelled.

What Every Form Needs

Four elements come up on nearly every form, and most denials trace back to one of them being weak or missing.

Exact URLs copied straight from your browser’s address bar. Don’t paraphrase or shorten them, and list every page you want removed. Reviewers only evaluate the specific addresses you provide.
Screenshots that show where the content sits on each page, cropped to the relevant area. Never take or submit screenshots containing child sexual abuse imagery.²
An explanation that names the policy or law at issue. For copyright, identify the original work and your ownership. For privacy, specify the type of sensitive data. For court orders, point to the exact section requiring removal.⁵
A working email address where Google can reach you.

After You Submit

You should get an email confirmation within a few hours. Legal requests submitted through the Troubleshooter include a reference number in the confirmation. Hold onto it. You’ll need it if you follow up or appeal.⁴⁹ Google may email during the review asking for clarification or more documentation.

For personal information requests filed through “Results about you,” you can check status anytime in the dashboard, which shows the link you flagged, the submission date and time, the request ID, and the contact information you reported.⁴

Timelines vary. Straightforward personal information requests often resolve in days. Court orders and disputed copyright claims take longer. Google does not publish guaranteed turnaround times for most request types.

If Your Request Is Denied

Denials come by email with a reason. For personal information requests filed through “Results about you,” the reason also appears on the dashboard. Common reasons: insufficient evidence of a policy violation, missing URLs or screenshots, or content Google considers newsworthy.⁴

Your next move depends on the request type. Policy-based denials can often be resubmitted with stronger documentation: better screenshots, more specific URLs, or a clearer tie to the policy. Legal denials may require a more specific court order or additional proof of ownership. The confirmation email sometimes signals what was missing, giving you a roadmap for the second attempt. If the content is genuinely unlawful and you’ve run out of options with Google, an attorney who handles internet law can help you obtain a court order that meets the requirements or pursue the hosting website directly.

Delisting Is Not Deletion

One thing to understand before you file: getting a page out of Google’s search results does not remove it from the internet. The page still lives on whatever website hosts it, and anyone with a direct link can reach it. If the content stays live at the source, delisted pages can reappear in search results later.¹⁰ Permanent removal usually means doing both: Google delisting plus a takedown at the hosting site itself. If you run the site, you can delete the content, require a login to view it, or add a noindex tag. If someone else runs the site, you’ll need to contact them, and when that fails, a legal demand or court order aimed at the host is typically the next step.

1
Google. Report Content On Google – Legal Help
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Google. Remove My Private Info From Google Search
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Google Search Help. Remove Personal Sexual Content From Google Search
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Google Search Help. Find and Remove Personal Info in Google Search Results
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Google Help. Circumvention, Counterfeit, and Court Orders
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Google. Government Requests to Remove Content
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Google Search Help. Get Help Removing Explicit or Intimate Personal Images
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Google Search Console Help. Refresh Outdated Content Tool
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Google Help. Report Content for Legal Reasons
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Google Search Console Help. Remove Information on Your Website From Google