Way To Keep Personal Information Out Of Search Engines and Social Media

     As we discussed before about the key that hacker mostly use to track and steal your data. We provide opportunities to the hackers by blindly uploading personal and sensitive information on social media platform, in the survey, in web marketing and in messages. The less personal data you share, the less chance for the hacker is there. If you're worried about the personal data you've found, here are five tips to get it removed

Stop Google saving your searches

Even if you regularly clear your browser history, Google may still be storing details of everything you search for and every link you click, supposedly to make your results more relevant. To view and delete this search data, go to your Web History page (www.google.com/history) when logged into Google, and either click 'Remove all Web History” to clear everything or choose specific entries to remove. To stop Google saving future searches, click Pause.

Find out how to delete online accounts

The brilliant AccountKlfler (www.accountkiller.com) explains how to cancel accounts at more than 450 sites, and uses color-coding to grade services according to how difficult they are to leave. For example, Google is rated 'white' because you can delete your account with a single click; Spotify gets 'Gray', because you need to email the support team with your username, date of birth and postcode; and WordPress is blacklisted, because it's impossible to delete your account – see http://en.support.wordpress.com/deleting-accounts/ for details. 

If you can't find instructions for a particular site, try the similar Delete Your Account (www.deleteyouraccount.com) for further suggestions.

Hide your Facebook profile in searches

You can prevent people from finding you on Facebook by adjusting a hard-to-find privacy setting. Click the drop-down menu in the top-right corner of your homepage and choose Privacy Settings. Click the Edit Settings option next to ‘Ads, Apps and Websites' and then click the same option next to "Public search. Finally, uncheck the 'Enable public search box to remove yourself from search results. 

Get unlisted from online directories.

If you're worried about your personal information being readily available through people-search engines, go to UnlistMy.info (www.unlistmy.info). This useful site provides opt-out instructions and contact details for online directories and databases, to help you get your name and other info removed. Often, this is as easy as filling in an online form or emailing the customer service department, but some companies make things difficult by requiring you to send a letter or fax requesting the deletion of your data, UnlistMy.Info is based in the US, but many of the sites it covers are international.

Remove content from Google search results

If running a Google search for your name uncovers confidential or embarrassing results, you can try to get them removed. On its 'Keep personal information out of Google' page (http://support.google.com/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=164133), the search engine suggests that you "fix the problem at the source” by contacting the webmaster of the site with your deletion request. You can then use one of the removal tools at http://support.google.com/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=1663688 to stop the page, image or other Google-hosted content (such as on Blogger and YouTube) appearing in Google search results. Click 'Create a new removal request', enter the URL and then click 'Yes, remove this page’. 

If you've asked for a whole page to be removed, you can check that your request was successful by entering the URL into your browser. Hopefully, this should produce a '4O4 (Page Not Found)' error code. If you only want specific content to be deleted, you can request the removal of the cached (archived) version of the page,

In today's digital age, it can be difficult to keep personal information away from search engines and social media platforms. However, there are several steps you can take to protect your privacy and minimize the amount of personal information that is available online. Here are some tips:

Limit the amount of personal information you share: Be cautious about the amount of personal information you share on social media platforms and other online forums. Avoid posting your full name, date of birth, home address, phone number, and other sensitive information that could be used to identify you.

Adjust your privacy settings: Most social media platforms allow you to adjust your privacy settings, which can help to limit the amount of personal information that is visible to the public. Take some time to review your privacy settings and make sure that you are comfortable with the level of information that is being shared.

Use a pseudonym: Consider using a pseudonym or nickname when creating social media profiles or participating in online forums. This can help to protect your real identity and make it more difficult for others to find personal information about you.

Use a VPN: A Virtual Private Network (VPN) can help to protect your online privacy by encrypting your internet connection and masking your IP address. This can make it more difficult for search engines and social media platforms to track your online activity and collect personal information about you.

Use ad blockers: Ad blockers can help to prevent targeted ads from appearing on your social media feeds and other websites. This can help to limit the amount of personal information that is being collected and used for advertising purposes.

Regularly review and delete old posts: Take some time to regularly review your social media profiles and delete any old posts or comments that contain personal information or that you no longer wish to be visible online.

In conclusion, while it can be difficult to completely keep personal information away from search engines and social media platforms, by following these tips you can help to protect your privacy and limit the amount of personal information that is available online.