How to Remove a Mugshot From the Internet
Online photos are usually harmless, but sometimes they can significantly affect your life. Mugshots, for example, can continue to have negative consequences, even if you aren’t guilty or your charges are no longer valid. They can affect your job prospects, relationships, and your reputation.
If your mugshot impacts your career and overall quality of life, there are several ways to remove it. In this blog post, we’ll discuss how to remove a mugshot from the internet to help you take control of your online image.
Steps to Remove a Mugshot from the Internet
To remove your mugshot from the internet, you first need to identify websites where your mugshot appears. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help take down your mugshots.
Identify Where Your Mugshot Appears
The first step is to find websites displaying your mugshot. Here are a few ways to do so:
- Search Engines: Look for your name on search engines like Google and Bing. Try attaching terms like “mugshot” to your name for more effective results. Check the “Images” tab in search engines and note which websites display your mugshot.
- Mugshot Websites: Check websites like Mugshots.com and Arrests.org that are known to feature public arrest pictures.
- Online Tools: You can also use Google Alerts or other privacy monitoring services to track where your name and images appear online.
Document all URLs you find and take screenshots of your mugshot as proof. This step can be helpful when you contact website administrators or decide to take legal action.
Contact Website Administrators
Once you’ve identified which websites host your mugshot, you should request the removal of your arrest picture from their website. Look for a “Contact Us” or “Support” section on the website. Some sites also include a form for mugshot removal requests. Ensure you have the legal documents proving your arrest record has been removed.
Keep in mind that some websites ask for a fee to take down your mugshot. While websites like Mugshots.com can remove your mugshot and arrest records for free, others can try to exploit you.
The law regarding mugshot removal varies depending on your state. For example, California law prohibits businesses from charging to remove arrest photos. The state law also restricts law enforcement agencies from sharing mugshots on social media.
It’s important to be aware of the mugshot removal laws in your state. If you come across a website admin who charges you a removal fee, you can report the site to your state’s attorney general.
Submit Removal Requests to Search Engines
Even if a website takes down your mugshot, the image may still appear on search engines like Google, Yahoo, and Bing. This is because cached versions of the pages displaying your arrest photo can still appear on these search engines.
To remove content from these search engines, you need to submit an outdated content removal request. Google, in particular, can be a good place to start removing your mugshot. Here’s how you can use Google’s Refresh Outdated Content tool:
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- First, note down the exact or cached URL where your mugshot appears.
- Next, enter the webpage URL that removed your mugshot and follow the prompts to report the content as outdated.
- After submitting, check the status of your request occasionally. If Google approves your request, the URL will no longer appear in search results.
Similarly, you can use Bing’s Content Removal Tool to remove a cached version of the page hosting your mugshot. Since Yahoo search is powered by Bing, removing the content from Bing will do the same for Yahoo.
Negative Search Results Removal Service
Our ORM team at Maximatic Media specializes in the de-indexation of offending material from search engines, including mugshots. Contact us for a free quote today!
Hiring a Reputation Management Service
If you find the mugshot removal process overwhelming, you can hire a reputation management agency like our very own Maximatic Media to do it for you. Professional ORM services are keenly adept at repairing and improving your online reputation in times of crisis.
What They Do
The right reputation management service can help you remove your mugshot from the internet in the following ways:
- Content Removal: These services have established relationships with website administrators. Their connections and experience enable them to effectively negotiate the removal of your arrest pictures from the websites.
- Content Suppression: If removing your mugshot is impossible, these services use advanced SEO techniques to flood search results with positive, high-ranking content about you. This process reduces the visibility of negative content like your mugshots.
- Ongoing Monitoring: These services can monitor your online presence to ensure the negative content doesn’t resurface.
- Legal Support: Some reputation management services partner with legal firms that can take action against website administrators who refuse to take down your mugshots.
Get in touch
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Conclusion
In today’s interconnected world, your online reputation matters more than ever. A single mugshot can negatively affect your personal and professional life, even if you weren’t guilty or the charges were dropped. Fortunately, you can easily learn how to remove a mugshot from the internet.
Start by figuring out which websites still host your mugshot and then work towards requesting their removal. It can be a daunting task, so you shouldn’t be reluctant to employ professional reputation management services.