Is there a right to be forgotten in the USA?
The honest answer: there is no general right to be forgotten in the United States. That does not mean nothing works. Here are the real ways content can be removed or pushed down in America.
Intimate images, a deepfake, or a threat? Use Get help now, never the written form. Opens a private chat. Our AI assistant replies first, and a person reviews every paid case. Someone under 18 involved? Go to the free help box
Paid service a written quote first the price in writing before any work
What actually works in the US
No, the US does not have a right to be forgotten.
There is no federal law that lets an ordinary person in America force Google, a website, or a company to erase truthful information because it is old, embarrassing, or unwanted.
The reason is the First Amendment: American law treats most published information, including unflattering but truthful information, as protected speech.
More detail
In the European Union, the GDPR gives people a “right to erasure”: under certain conditions, search engines and companies often must delete personal data about you.
A handful of state privacy laws (like California’s) give you rights over how businesses use your data, but none creates a broad erasure right against publishers or search engines.
- A right to be forgottenno federal law
- GDPR’s right to erasurean EU law
- State privacy lawshow businesses use data
- Platform and search policiesspecific content
- A court orderwith a lawyer
Removed at the source, or delisted from search.
Removed at the source means the content is taken off the website where it lives, so it drops out of search naturally.
Delisted from search means the page still exists, but a search engine stops showing it for certain searches, often only ones with your name.
More detail
Two very different things get lumped together as “removal,” and confusing them is where most money gets wasted. Removal at the source usually needs the site owner to cooperate, a platform policy that applies, or a court order.
Delisting is a limited result, never a substitute for removal at the source: anyone with the direct link can still reach it. If only delisting is realistic, you deserve to hear that before you pay, not after.
- blog.example/post/…Source removed
- news.example/2019/…Search delisted
- people.example/…In progress
- court.example/case/…No result
Source and search, labeled apart.
The mechanisms that actually work in the US.
There is no magic erase button, but several real, lawful options exist, each with its own decision-maker and its own limits. Which ones apply depends entirely on what the content is and where it lives.
More detail
A court order, a platform’s own policy, a people-search opt-out, the publisher’s choice, or pushing results down: who controls the page, the legal question, and search-only help have to be kept separate before anyone sells you certainty.
Truthful but negative is the hardest case.
If a real outlet published something about you, no agency can force its deletion: the publisher controls it and the First Amendment protects it.
In the US, truth is a complete defense to defamation. Accurate content, even humiliating, outdated, or unfair, usually can’t be forced down; what remains depends on who controls it.
More detail
The realistic option is delisting plus publishing other material; true removal generally needs the publisher to agree, or a court order, which means a lawsuit and an attorney.
Defamation removal applies to false statements of fact. If the content is actually false and damaging, that is a conversation for a defamation attorney, because the path runs through the courts, not through us.
- news.example/2019/…Publisher decides
- people.example/…Opt-out
- blog.example/post/…Author decides
- forum.example/t/…False claim: a lawyer
Who controls each result sets what can change.
What you get
Use the free tools first
Search engines’ personal-info forms, people-search opt-outs, platform reporting, and official privacy options are the lowest-risk first step.
Page versus search
Deletion by the publisher, search delisting, people-search opt-outs, and pushing results down are different results and should never be sold as one thing.
Pay only after the scope is written
If a service can’t tell you whether an item can come down at the source, is search-only, needs a lawyer, or is out of scope, pause before you pay.
Facts you can check
Delaware file no. 10392739
Check it in Delaware's public entity search
AboutUsAgency, Inc. is a Delaware corporation.
See the recordCard payments on Stripe
Check it on the payment page at checkout
You pay on a payment page hosted by Stripe. We never receive your card number.
How we're paidNot a law firm
Check it on our trust page
A private company. Not a law firm, not law enforcement, and not affiliated with the police, the FBI, Google, Meta or any app.
What we areWhy certainty promises are a red flag
No private company controls what a newspaper publishes, what a judge orders, or what Google indexes. Anyone promising a specific removal before looking at your case is overstating what they can do.
- Force a publisher to delete protected reporting. No agency can.
- Compel deletion of true information. There is no legal mechanism for it in the US.
- Sell delisting as removal. Delisting is a limited result, never a substitute for removal at the source.
- Give legal advice. Court-order and defamation questions belong with a lawyer before a removal agency sells anything.
What we do
For matters we accept, AboutUs writes down the intended result and the exact refund terms in your service agreement before you pay, and tells you whether your situation has a realistic option, a long shot, or no option at all. Sometimes the honest answer is that the content cannot be removed, and the right move is pushing it down in search or accepting it. AboutUs is a paid service, and the price is in writing before any work.
Delisting after a court order
If a court rules that specific content is unlawful (for example, in a successful defamation case), the order can go to Google’s legal removal process. That means winning or settling a lawsuit with a lawyer, and Google delists the result; it does not delete the page.
Platform policy removals
Google allows eligible requests about select personal information, such as your phone number, home address, email, and certain government ID or financial details, through its “Results about you” and personal-info tools, often search-only, and declines content it considers valuable to the public, like news or government records; social platforms have their own reporting for harassment, impersonation, and non-consensual content.
People-search opt-outs
Their opt-outs can help, and California’s Delete Act and DROP system are real public options, but listings that keep coming back are a different job from one removal case.
The publisher decides
For a blog post, a forum thread, or an article, the site owner or author decides whether it is deleted.
Pushing results down
Publishing and strengthening accurate material so the unwanted result falls below where most people look; it deletes nothing and promises no ranking, but it can change what people see first.
Intimate images, deepfakes, or sextortion
This page is general education about non-intimate content. For an intimate, sexualized, or nude image of you, a leaked private photo or video, a deepfake nude, or someone threatening to share such images, don’t use the written form: ask us privately in chat first, with a short description. You are not in trouble for reaching out, and you don’t need anything figured out before you do.
Illustrative example
ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLE — a hypothetical situation written to explain how we work. It is not a client case and does not describe a real result. Outcomes vary; eligibility and any results-based terms are set in your written service agreement.
A small-business owner finds an old, accurate news story about a dropped lawsuit ranking first for her name. She asks us to "make it disappear." Honest answer: because the article is truthful editorial reporting, the publisher and a court control deletion — no agency can force the newspaper to remove it. What is realistic is asking the publisher directly, seeking search delisting only if a court ever rules the content unlawful, and building accurate, higher-ranking material so the old story falls below where most people look. We would tell her that up front, before she paid anyone a dollar.
Read the primary sources yourself
We would rather you verify than take our word for it: official, primary references for the mechanisms above. Page last reviewed September 29, 2026.
Google Search Help — Remove your personal info from Google Search (opens in a new tab)Google Search Help — Remove select personal content (private info policy) (opens in a new tab)California Privacy Protection Agency — About DROP and the Delete Act (opens in a new tab)California Privacy Protection Agency — Data Broker Registry (opens in a new tab)FTC — Report fraud and privacy violations (reportfraud.ftc.gov) (opens in a new tab)
Read on
Free options first, then the pages next to this one. Google’s tools, people-search opt-outs, StopNCII, and NCMEC all have different limits; the resources page explains what each can and can’t do.
Free safety optionsAsk Google to drop your address or phone with Results about youA mugshot in Google results: the two Google requestsHow to remove content from the internet (the full guide)The TAKE IT DOWN Act, explainedMugshot removalDoxxing and personal-info removal
Education, not legal advice
This page is education, not legal advice. AboutUs is a content-removal agency, not a law firm, and nothing here creates an attorney-client relationship or substitutes for advice from a licensed attorney in your state. Laws change and facts matter; if you have a legal question, talk to a lawyer.
Under 18 · never a paid case
If this involves someone under 18
We work with adults (18+) only. If intimate images of someone under 18 are involved, report it immediately to the NCMEC CyberTipline at report.cybertip.org, use NCMEC's Take It Down at takeitdown.ncmec.org, and contact local law enforcement. Do not send the content to anyone — including us.
report.cybertip.org (opens in a new tab)takeitdown.ncmec.org (opens in a new tab)
Right to be forgotten in the USA: questions
Is there a right to be forgotten in the United States?
No. The US has no general right to be forgotten. There is no federal law that lets a private individual force the deletion of truthful information about them. The First Amendment treats most published information as protected speech, which is why a European-style erasure right has not been enacted here.
Does the EU right to be forgotten (GDPR) apply to Americans?
Not in the US. GDPR's right to erasure is an EU law. It can sometimes help if your data is processed by an EU-based entity or you are an EU resident, but it does not give Americans a right to erase content from US websites or US search results.
Can I force Google to remove negative results about me in America?
Not simply because they are negative. Google removes results when the law requires it — for example, after a court order declaring content unlawful — or when content fits a specific policy, such as your phone number, home address, or certain ID and financial details. Truthful, newsworthy content is generally not removable on request. And even when Google delists a result, the page still exists on the original site.
Can a truthful but embarrassing article be removed?
Usually not by force. In the US, truth is a complete defense to defamation, so accurate content is protected even when it is outdated or unflattering. Realistic options depend on who controls it: the publisher's choice, people-search opt-outs if it is collected personal information, search-only help, or pushing results down. There is no legal mechanism to compel deletion of true information.
Why should I avoid services that promise certain removal?
Because no private company controls courts, publishers, or search engines, certainty is a promise the law does not support. It is one of the clearest warning signs in this industry. Honest providers describe what they will try, on what basis, and what refund terms apply instead of selling certainty.
What is the difference between deleting content and delisting it?
Removal at the source takes the content off the website itself, so it drops out of search naturally. Delisting only stops a search engine from showing the page for certain searches while the page stays online. Delisting is a useful limited result but never a substitute for removal at the source — anyone with the direct link can still reach delisted content.
Does AboutUs promise removal in advance?
No, and you should distrust anyone who does. AboutUs is a removal agency, not a law firm. We look at your situation honestly, tell you which options realistically apply, and put the intended result and refund terms in your written service agreement before you pay. Sometimes the honest answer is that removal is not possible and pushing results down is the only realistic option.
What if the content is an intimate or nude image, a deepfake, or someone is threatening to share images of me?
Request a private review for intimate-image cases, leaked or deepfake nudes, and sextortion — or ask us a question first. The review asks for one public link and confirms your age and that you are the person shown (or authorized to act for them); you see the one-time price before you pay, and a person reviews every paid case within 48 hours, with a full refund if we can't take it. Keep the content itself on your device. If anyone involved is under 18, report it to NCMEC's CyberTipline at report.cybertip.org or 1-800-843-5678, and call 911 if someone is in immediate danger.
If you want a straight read on your situation.
A written quote request is confidential. Send a short private description of your non-intimate links; we tell you honestly what fits: removal at the source, search-only help, a privacy opt-out, pushing results down, or nothing we should take on.