Spokeo Removal Solutions
Spokeo Removal: How to Complete the Spokeo Opt-Out Process
It bothers me how naive people can be. The other day a friend of mine was shocked after I informed her that I knew things about her that she thought were private. But she didn’t realize her info was all over the internet including Spokeo. She definitely didn’t know she needed to do a Spokeo opt-out to get her info down.
Her problem stems from the fact that she’s a part of several social media sites. She got rather upset when I stated that she did not look too bad for a 38-year-old who enjoyed Brittany Spears and her favorite toy was known as Rabbit!? That’s when her mouth dropped and she advised me to stop. She had no idea that she’d left a societal trail behind her when she was attempting to try online dating.
The majority of us have typed our very own names into Google. As well as their wives and boyfriends just out of curiosity. Some Google others to see if they can find out any exciting pieces of gossip.
People today hope that if they type their name into Google, Google will display only positive uplifting information. Well, that isn’t true because deep down in the guts of the internet lurks something called the “dark web” also called the “invisible web” and guess what? The dark web isn’t indexed by search engines. That means your information could be on hundreds of websites without you even knowing.
This information, collected by data brokers and people search sites, could be assessed online but is indexed from the standard search engines (i.e. Google).
The majority of this information is stored in databases and exhibited in response to certain searches by the owners. However, you can find resources easily obtainable and free that expose this content to you. And when we say content, we mean your home address, phone numbers, relatives information, financial records, court records, photos, and much more.
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People Search Engines
So how is the information retrieved from the invisible web? There are solutions known as “People Search Websites”, these are the websites hard to reach if you are less tech-savvy. Alright, so you need to search for information that Google doesn’t crawl? As we said, there are a number of so-called people search engines for starters. Let us look at one called Spokeo.com with this database you are able to find information about your enemies, families, loved ones, or perhaps the next-door neighbor.
With Spokeo, there is a facility to export your complete email address book. There is a disclaimer that states “Your password and email are required to retrieve your email contacts and will not be used again to access your email account”. So if you would like to dig deep in your pockets, well, to be honest, it is not that deep, a few dollars a month. The computer software will monitor your contacts and let you know if they are doing something new online and report back to you.
Yes, human resource departments use people search websites professionally. There is nothing illegal in this, in actuality, wouldn’t you want to know if someone working around you in a felon? Websites such as Spokeo give you answers in as little as 5 minutes.
Where Does Spokeo Get Information?
To outline people search websites, these are utilities that use your e-mail address to find people across the “dark web”. Next Spokeo crawls the entire internet for any social media profiles and public records associated with your name. If found, it will virtually copy and paste information, court records, and photos on your background report along with a reference URL for your profile itself.
Just as we see happen in the media, people search websites tend to leach data off each other. Meaning, there may be one people search website, WhitePages, and once this database updates itself all the smaller databases update WhitePages updates. This process is repeated all day, every day.
The process of managing this private information and getting these public records removed is known as online reputation management.
Learn more about Online Reputation Management at NetReputation
Best Spokeo Removal Methods
Regardless of this, the downsides often outweigh the advantages in such scenarios. That is the reason why understanding the best way to perform a Spokeo opt-out is vital.
Though Spokeo publishes aggregate information that’s publicly available about individuals on the internet, they understand that many will find it somewhat disturbing. Owing to that, the website makes it possible for people to request removals (aka an opt-out) from their website.
Spokeo Removal: Spokeo Opt-out Procedure
If you prefer to keep the kind of information mentioned previously private, you are in luck. While eliminating your private information from Spokeo does not follow that other sites will also follow package, it is a start.
The steps below showcase the most optimal way to perform a Spokeo opt-out from their opt-out page for all information featured to date. Follow the steps below and you should have no issue removing your personal information from Spokeo.com, completing their opt-out page, and getting a confirmation from this data broker website that your information will be removed.
This confirmation link, or verification link, will have the notice on information removed and how long it will take. Access your verification link whenever you want to follow up on your Spokeo opt-out page completion.
Create a New Email
Make an email address that does not include your name or any personal details.
You’ll get a confirmation link at the conclusion of the Spokeo opt-out process and will need to click on the included link to confirm your removal request. Look at making a Gmail account to use together with the elimination procedure.
Bear in mind, guerrilla email accounts are momentary, therefore answer the Spokeo opt-out confirmation email instantly.
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Locate Your Record on Spokeo
Next, head over to Spokeo.com and enter your name into the search query box. If you are having a difficult time locating your record try using nicknames or aliases that you’ve had in the past. For example, maiden names, professional names, and/or names from previous marriages.
Click “SEE RESULTS” Button
After you have located your record amongst the other listings for your name, click “SEE RESULTS”. This should be a green/white box to the right of your nameplate (see below).
Copy & Paste Webpage URL
At the top of the page, located in the address bar, simply copy the URL for the webpage. You will need this for later so make sure you paste to onto a notepad for the time being.
Scroll Down, Click on “PRIVACY”
After you have stored your Webpage URL in a safe place for later, scroll all the way to the bottom of the page (your record). Click the anchor text that says “PRIVACY”. This will redirect you to a new webpage that will ask for more information. This is when you will need the URL we saved earlier.
Next, scroll all the way down on the “PRIVACY” page until you see “OPT-OUT”. Click on “OPT-OUT”. This takes you directly to the Spokeo opt-out page.
Submit Webpage URL into Opt-out Form
Finally, you are redirected to complete the final step of the Spokeo removal process. This is where 2 key pieces of information will be needed in order for you to submit the opt-out form successfully.
- Email Address (use the new one you just created)
- Webpage URL (web address for your specific record)
Be Patient
Lastly, be patient while waiting for your Spokeo removal to be finalized. As you can imagine there are dozens (if not hundreds) of individuals submitting opt-out forms on a daily basis. Give the website time to update (1-2 weeks) before you try to repeat the process.
If you are still struggling to remove your information from Spokeo.com please complete the form below. GuaranteedRemoval.com provides a comprehensive background removal solution that clears your name from over 50 people search websites in as little as a few weeks. Learn more now!
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Remove Your Address From Google
How Do I Remove My Address From Google?
Removing your address from Google is a daunting assignment, however, you might be able to recover your online solitude if you are prepared put in the work and get your hands dirty. To the surprise of most, Google does not own any of the content they show. The best way I like to describe Google is like a librarian, the librarian does not own any of the books in the library however they know exactly where everything is located and are happy to quickly show you.
In this article, we will discuss how you can work to remove your address from Google. This can be in the form of external websites, websites and social media profiles that you own personally or even how to notify Google once the content has been removed so they can update their search result pages.
If you or someone you know is working to remove their address from Google, along with other sensitive information you are in luck. GuaranteedRemoval’s team of reputation analyst have perfected the way in which content is removed online. With over 100+ years of experience, please complete the form below if you would like some assistance with taking back control of your privacy online.
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Third-Party Databases & Websites
When it comes to locating information about yourself or business online that you did not publish there are a variety of approaches you can take. Begin the process of locating yourself online by simply performing a quick Google, Bing, or Yahoo search for your name. The reason we say only use these 3 search engines is that a majority of the traffic across the world is found here. We recommend using Google amongst the three options.
As you scroll through the search engine results pages keep a record of what websites pertain directly to you. You can accomplish this by utilizing Google Sheets and creating a simple spreadsheet. This way you have a quick glance at each website (or to verify it has been removed) for future purposes if needed.
Once you have compiled a detailed list of where your personal and private information is lingering online you will revisit once domain once again. However this time with a different purpose, now you are looking for their sources or how they obtained your information. Typically this can be found within the website’s terms and service page or their privacy policy. This way you know where to look next in order to completely eliminate your address and other sensitive information online.
If you are struggling to locate these pages, no worries, there are still a few things you can do. Next, you will venture over to ICANN’s WHOIS tool which disclosing hosting information about a particular website. Therefore, if the website is publicly hosted you should be able to obtain the webmaster’s contact information from which point you have direct lines of communication. Send the webmaster a simple email requesting that your information be removed.
Controlled Content & Personal Websites
Controlled content is anything you personally published online. For most individuals, their controlled content is found on social media or maybe a professional blogging domain. The first step you should take is again to create a spreadsheet. As rudimentary as this may seem, planning is key to ensure you are covering everything required. When it comes to removing your address from Google you cannot skip anything, or else the project is essentially pointless if your information is still somewhere online.
- Log into all of your social media accounts
- Make sure you have enables all privacy features and functionalities
- Contact friends or family members that may have posted embarrassing information about you and ask them to kindly delete it from their profile
- Some social media platforms do not offer privacy settings, in this case, make sure no revealing details are listed in your bio, geotags, or anywhere else on the page.
URL Removal
Once you have worked through all of the online media and content that you control you should begin reaching out to those websites from your initial list. In order to do so, you will need a viable email address. We recommend that you use a brand new email, so create a new Gmail and only use it as you work to remove your address from Google.
Once the webmaster has agreed to remove any content related to you on their website(s) you must notify Google’s Support team via the “URL Removal” found within your Google Search Console. From this point, all you have to do is simply copy and paste the now dead (Error 404) webpage so Google to review it and update their results accordingly.
If you are struggling to reach a specific webmaster and the content you wish to remove endangers your physical well-being Google does a great job to understand your issues. Somethings (more often than expected) Google will de-index or blacklist a specific URL from ever appear in their results. This means the webpage still exists online, however, the only way another can view it is by directly visiting the website. This (in our opinion) works the same as a total removal.
Locating Yourself on People-Search Websites
Did you know there are dozens of websites (>50) that provide subscription-based service to simply view an individual’s sensitive information? People-search websites are a combination of public records mixed with distributed content on social media.
For example, one people-search website, in particular, MyLife.com allows anyone to find anyone’s home address, phone number, social profiles, criminal record and make more for no more than $10. This can be an extremely scary thought if you have a troubled past, have someone looking for you, was in an abusive marriage/relationship or even owe someone money. We have heard countless horror stories about people showing up to the home which resulted in the authorities getting involved.
In this digital age, we rarely give it much thought as to how much personal information is online. You assume that websites do their “due diligence” to protect their customers. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Today, we live in a pay-to-play environment in a sea of endless amounts of information that we call the internet.
If you are interested in learning more about how GuaranteedRemoval.com can assist you with removing your address from Google please complete the form below. As one of our knowledgable reputation analysts to reach out to you by phone or email ready to answer all of your questions.
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Expected Timeframe to Remove Your Address From Google
When it comes to the internet it is hard to give a concrete number. On average, after a website has removed content it takes Google, Bing, and Yahoo roughly 1-2 weeks before their results show any changes.