What is Right to Be Forgotten?
A legal right, primarily under GDPR Article 17, that allows individuals to request the deletion of their personal data from organizations and search engine results when it's no longer necessary or was processed without proper consent.
Also known as: Right to Erasure, GDPR Article 17, Right to Deletion
The right to be forgotten is one of the most powerful privacy rights in the world — and one of the most underused. It gives you the legal power to demand deletion of your personal data.
How It Works Under GDPR
You can request erasure when:
- The data is no longer necessary for its original purpose
- You withdraw consent and there's no other legal basis for processing
- You object to processing and there are no overriding legitimate grounds
- The data was processed unlawfully
- The data was collected from a child
Organizations must respond within 30 days (extendable to 90 in complex cases).
What You Can Request Removal Of
- Search engine results: Google, Bing must delist pages about you upon valid request
- Social media posts: Platforms must delete your data and content
- Data broker listings: Brokers must remove your profile
- Company databases: Any company holding your personal data without ongoing legitimate purpose
- Forum posts: Platforms must delete your identifiable content
- News articles: In limited cases, outdated or irrelevant articles can be delisted
Where This Right Exists
| Jurisdiction | Law | Strength |
|---|---|---|
| EU/EEA | GDPR Article 17 | Strong — enforceable with fines up to €20M |
| UK | UK GDPR | Strong — mirrors EU GDPR |
| California | CCPA/CPRA | Good — "right to delete" with some exceptions |
| Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut | State privacy laws | Moderate — right to delete personal data |
| Brazil | LGPD | Strong — right to deletion |
| Japan, South Korea, Argentina | National privacy laws | Varying protections |
Limitations
- Public interest: Journalism, historical archives, scientific research may override
- Legal obligations: Companies can retain data required by law (tax records, etc.)
- Freedom of expression: Legitimate speech interests may prevent removal
- Technical limits: Data in backups may take time to purge; data in trained AI models is difficult to remove
- Geographic scope: GDPR applies to EU processing; US has no federal equivalent
How to Exercise This Right
- Identify who has your data — Search for yourself online, check data brokers
- Send a formal request — Email the organization's Data Protection Officer (DPO) or privacy team
- Cite the specific legal basis — GDPR Article 17, CCPA Section 1798.105, or relevant local law
- Be specific — Describe exactly what data you want deleted
- Keep records — Document all requests and responses
- Escalate if needed — File complaints with your national data protection authority if requests are ignored
- Use Google's removal tool — google.com/webmasters/tools/legal-removal-request for search result removal
For US Residents
While there's no federal right to be forgotten in the US, you can still:
- Exercise deletion rights under California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, and other state laws
- Request removal from data broker sites (opt-out processes)
- Use Google's personal information removal tool
- Engage a vetted data removal service — compare options on
/remove; examples include Optery, DeleteMe, and others - Send cease and desist letters for unauthorized use of personal information
Related Terms
Data Detox
A systematic process of reducing your digital footprint by deleting old accounts, removing personal information from the internet, and changing habits that expose your data.
Data Portability
The right to receive your personal data from a service in a structured, commonly used format, and to transfer it to another service.
GDPR
The General Data Protection Regulation is a comprehensive data protection law in the European Union that gives individuals control over their personal data. It establishes strict requirements for how organizations collect, process, store, and transfer personal information.
How to Remove Your Information Online
A practical guide to reducing your digital footprint by opting out of data brokers, deleting old accounts, removing search results, and minimizing future data exposure.
Right to Access
A legal right under GDPR and similar laws that allows individuals to request a copy of all personal data an organization holds about them.
Have more questions?
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