Google upgrades its privacy tools to tackle sensitive data and explicit images 🔒

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Picture this: you Google your name and your phone number pops up. Your home address. Maybe even intimate photos. It’s a nightmare scenario — and for millions of people, it’s very real. Now, Google says it’s stepping up its privacy game with a major overhaul of its data removal tools.

“Results about you” now targets ultra-sensitive data 📊

Google’s Results about you tool — already used by more than 10 million people — previously focused on standard personal details like phone numbers, home addresses, and email accounts. As of February 10, 2026, it goes much further: users can now register government-issued ID information directly in the tool.

Passports, driver’s licenses, Social Security numbers — the kinds of highly sensitive data that can fuel identity theft if exposed. You submit the information once using advanced encryption, and Google continuously scans the web for matches. If it detects your data online, you’ll get an alert and can request removal directly from the dashboard in just a few clicks. It’s a more proactive, automated approach to protecting your digital footprint.

Explicit images: a faster, less traumatic process 🚨

For victims of revenge porn or sexually explicit deepfakes, Google has redesigned its reporting system from the ground up. Gone is the bureaucratic maze. Now, you simply click the three-dot menu next to an image result, select “Remove result,” then choose “This is a sexual image of me.”

The upgrades are significant:

• You can submit multiple images in a single request.
• You can enable filters to automatically block similar future content.
• You get immediate access to emotional and legal support organizations.
• A centralized hub lets you track every request in real time.

For victims, not having to relive the trauma by filing repetitive, fragmented complaints is a meaningful improvement.

A cleaner, simpler reporting menu 🔧

The three-dot menu next to every Google Search result has been streamlined. Users are now guided through two main pathways: removing personal information or reporting illegal content. No legal jargon. No technical complexity. Just a step-by-step flow designed to make the process accessible to everyone.

© Google

© Google

© Google

Another welcome addition: you can now request that outdated search results be refreshed when a website has already updated its content — instead of waiting weeks for Google’s index to catch up naturally.

The limitations you should know 💡

There’s an important caveat: removing something from Google Search doesn’t delete it from the internet. The content remains on the original website. Think of it like drawing the curtains on a window — it shields your privacy from public view, but it doesn’t change what’s inside the room.

For full deletion, you still need to contact the site owner directly. That said, de-indexing content from Google significantly reduces public exposure, given that the vast majority of users rely on search engines to find information.

Taking back control, one click at a time 🎯

These updates reflect a broader recognition: our digital identity deserves the same level of protection as our physical one. Google isn’t solving everything — permanent deletion remains complicated — but it is making the reporting process dramatically simpler.

For victims of non-consensual imagery, reducing friction and emotional strain in the removal process is more than a UX improvement. It’s a safeguard. The rollout begins in the United States, with expansion planned for other regions, including parts of Africa.

Have you ever had to request the removal of personal information from Google? Do these new tools go far enough to protect online privacy — or should platforms take even stronger action? Let’s talk in the comments.