Do you want to cover the tracks, or disappear from the internet? While some people crave fame on the internet, some find it a burden. You may not always be able to completely remove yourself from the internet, but you can follow this wikiHow to remove almost any personal information from the internet and social media.
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Step 1. Consider another way without having to delete the account
Most of the steps in this article cannot be undone. As a result, all information will be lost, and the business you have built online will also be lost. And in some cases, you won't be able to create an account using the same name.
- Are there alternatives to this, such as changing your online name or using a different email account than usual? For example, if the email address you are currently using has been linked to bad things online, you could create a new account that is only used for professional purposes, such as sending out resumes or applying for scholarships.
- If you're worried about old tweets, try deleting the entire tweet instead of deleting the account.
- If you're avoiding cyberstalkers, check out How to Deal with a Stalker for tips to keep you safe.
- If there is a problem regarding false information or defamation on the internet, contact legal counsel to resolve the issue.
Step 2. Search yourself on Google
The best way for you to know what information to delete is to find out what information other people can see. When searching for your own name on Google, put your name in quotation marks to make the results more specific. Make a note of all the sites that show your name.
- If your name is widely used, try including the city or occupation in the search.
- For tips on how to get the best results when searching on Google, check out the wikiHow article on how to use tricks in Advanced Google Search.
Step 3. Contact Google to remove information about yourself
For European citizens, starting in 2014, they can ask Google to remove personal information from search results. Click this link to request removal of personal information.
- No matter where you are, you can ask Google to remove outdated content from search results. The condition is that you must delete or modify the content in such a way that the current version of Google becomes incorrect. You can access the removal tool at
- When you've completed the steps in this article, search results that show you will disappear over time, unless they're archived elsewhere.
Step 4. Delete game (game) and social media accounts
Social media services and games are so popular that they are often the first places to find you on the internet. You might have a hard time remembering all the accounts you've created over the years, but a good place to start is to delete yourself from the most popular sites. While it can't clear memory on the "deep web" (hidden information that doesn't appear on the regular internet), it can be a great first step. Use the list below (or do a wikiHow search) to get started:
- How to Delete Facebook Account Permanently
- How to Delete Instagram Account
- How to Delete Twitter Account
- How to Delete YouTube Account
- How to Delete a LinkedIn Account
- How to Delete a Twitch Account
- How to Delete TikTok Account
- How to Delete Pinterest Account
- How to Delete a Foursquare Account
- How to Delete Minecraft Account
- How to Delete Steam Account
- How to Delete Soundcloud Account
- How to Delete Flickr Account
- How to Delete Google+ Account
- How to Cancel MySpace Account
- Don't forget some sites like Ning, Yahoo Groups, and private forums. If you can't delete an account on a private forum, you can usually ask the forum administrator to edit your post.
Step 5. Delete your site and/or blog
If you have a blog or personal site using a free service, such as WordPress, Blogger, or Medium, you can delete all content and close your account. If you are using paid hosting, contact the service to close your account and remove the site.
- If your site or blog is publicly available, it may have been archived by Wayback Machine Archive.org. Take a look at this wikiHow to see if your site is archived. While there is no official way to remove a site, a number of webmasters have managed to send DMCA copyright takedown notices to [email protected].
- Make sure you also remove accounts that have advertising tools, statistics monitors, and third-party plugins.
- If you have submitted articles to online publications or content hosting sites, you may be able to delete the article by contacting the site administrator.
- If your content is reloaded on another blog, contact the blog owner and ask him to remove your name and the content.
Step 6. Cancel subscription and profile on dating sites
While you may not use your real name for online dating profiles, they are linked to your email address, phone number, or other identifying information. Check out the article below (or do a wikiHow search) on how to delete yourself on some of the most popular dating sites and apps:
- How to Delete a Tinder Account
- How to Delete OKCupid Account
- How to Delete an eHarmony Account
- How to Delete MeetMe Account
- How to Delete Zoosk Account
- How to Delete Ashley Madison's Profile
Step 7. Remove your name from the data broker site
If you are over 18, your name may appear in Google search results for various people search sites (eg Spokeo, Intelius, or InstantCheckmate). These sites buy your personal information and display it publicly (sometimes you have to pay). The good news is that you can usually delete your personal data from these sites easily. You can access some quick links below:
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InstantCheckmate:
www.instantcheckmate.com/opt-out
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Intelligent:
www.intelius.com/optout
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FamilyTreeNow:
:
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Spoke:
www.spokeo.com/optout
- Ask the telephone company if your name is listed on the internet. If so, ask them to delete your details completely.
Step 8. Cancel shopping and payment accounts
Some sites such as Amazon and eBay display a public version of your profile for other users, which may be easily found through a search engine. You'll need to delete those accounts, but if you want to go further, also delete payment accounts like PayPal and Venmo. Check out the wikiHow article below (or do a search) for tips on how to delete an account on a popular payment and shopping service site:
- How to Delete Amazon Account
- How to Delete eBay Account
- How to Delete Venmo Account
- How to Delete Paypal Account
- How to Delete Square Account
- Don't forget to subscribe to your local advertising groups, Craigslist account, and Etsy profile.
Step 9. Try everything you can to get out of an account that can't be deleted
Some sites do not allow users to completely delete an account, forcing you to simply "deactivate" it (while your information remains in the system), or leave the account. If you have compelling reasons (such as legal or security-related) to delete your account, please contact the site administrator or owner. At least you should be able to change your name to mask your real identity. If no one can help, try the steps below:
- Login (login) and delete all personal information. If you are not allowed to leave certain fields blank, replace the information with a fake name, such as Pangeran Jawa or Dono Kasino. Do this across all non-deletable accounts, and don't forget to enter different information in each account so they can't be linked to each other. If you provide a different email address, the site will contact that email to confirm. This means that you must use a valid email. After that, you can move on to the next step.
- If you do not have an anonymous email address to associate with the account, create a new email account from the free hosting, and do not enter any information related to yourself in this new email address.
- If you have created a new anonymous email account, enter this email address into your non-deleteable profile and confirm. Once that's done, make sure your real email address no longer appears anywhere else on the account.
Step 10. Consider hiring a professional
If you find it difficult, or the task is too daunting, you can use a data wipe service. This service is paid, but the payoff is worth it when deleting this data is a matter of urgency. Look for services like these:
- Being able to remove yourself from the " deep web " instead of just deleting data visible on the regular web.
- Have an agreement with a data source provider.
- Get good reviews.
Step 11. Cancel email account (optional)
If you're satisfied that you've successfully deleted your internet presence, you may also want to delete your email account. However, hold off on deleting your email account until you are satisfied with deleting your presence on the internet. Maybe you need that email address to contact certain sites or delete something else.
- If the email address can't be associated with your name, make sure that your name and personal information are not displayed on your profile. For example, if you're using a free, web-based email service like Outlook.com or Gmail, go to the site, go to settings, and replace everything related to your real name with something else.
- If you are using a paid email service, contact the provider company for guidance. Paid e-mail services must have staff to contact.
- Before deleting, always check that you have not deleted any important information that you want to keep. Move all the data needed to a memory card or other storage media.
Tips
- There may be some things that can't be changed, such as the mention of your name in the news, or an interview you've had.
- Ask friends to delete your photo (or photos you've taken) from their social media accounts.
- You can use a " whois " service or an online search service to find out who owns a site so you know who to call if needed. This is especially useful if the site doesn't include email. Look for " admin email " and " data server " in the information you get.
- If you're really struggling with getting your name and details out on the internet and don't know what to do, seek help from a privacy monitor such as the EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) for advice.
- If you have a problem with false information or defamation of you on the internet, contact legal counsel to help resolve this.
Warning
- Remember the saying, "if you're already on the internet, you'll be there forever". So you should always be careful when sharing anything on the internet. Prevention is better than cure.
- Be prepared to face resistance from some webmasters who defend their "right" to keep their information public. Some of them think that this is not a matter of privacy and privacy, and you will be considered as an insult to something they stand for. Never give up, and if necessary, seek help from a lawyer or privacy organization if your privacy is seriously compromised.
- Some websites use emotional seduction techniques to keep you going. Some cues like "all friends will miss you" are often used to get you to rethink. Actually the site does not want to lose you as a customer. When in doubt, place a photo of your real-world friend on your desk, hit "Delete" on the site, then call your friends to go to a cafe and have a casual chat. In the end, your problem will be solved this way.
