How to Remove Mugshots From Google
Free tools you can use today, and what to do when they aren't enough.
Why Your Mugshot Shows Up on Google
Google doesn't host mugshots — it indexes pages that already exist elsewhere. A booking photo typically starts on a county or government site as a public record, then gets scraped and republished by commercial mugshot sites and data brokers. Google's crawler finds those republished pages and, because they're built to rank, often surfaces them within 12 hours of the original arrest.
That distinction matters: to actually stop your mugshot from showing up on Google, you generally need to address it at two levels — the page itself, and Google's index of that page.
Step 1 — Remove the Mugshot at the Source
The most durable fix is getting the page removed from the site that's publishing it, not just hidden from search. Our mugshot removal service covers the full process for identifying every copy and filing takedown requests with site owners.
If you know which site has your listing, our site-by-site removal directory has specific steps for the most common publishers.
Step 2 — Use Google's Removal Tools
Google offers a few free, legitimate tools worth trying before or alongside source removal:
- Results About You tool. Google's dashboard for requesting removal of search results containing your personal information, including certain sensitive content. Search "Results About You" in Google, set up an alert for your name, and submit a removal request directly through the tool when a mugshot result appears.
- Outdated Content Removal tool. If the source page has already been taken down or edited but Google's cached version still shows the old content, this tool (search "Google Remove Outdated Content") asks Google to re-crawl and refresh its index — useful after you've already gotten a publisher to remove the page.
- Legal removal requests. For content that violates specific legal grounds (not simply "I don't like this"), Google's legal removal request forms are a separate, more formal channel — generally reserved for copyright, court-ordered removal, or similar documented claims.
These tools genuinely work in some cases. They also have real limits: Google can decline a request, the underlying page can still exist even after de-indexing, and none of them force a mugshot site to take a listing down.
Removing Mugshots From Google Images
Google Images is indexed separately from web search, so a mugshot can still appear in image results even after the corresponding web page is de-indexed. The Results About You tool covers image results as well as text results — search for your name specifically in Google Images and submit any mugshot photos you find through the same removal flow. As with web results, the most permanent fix is getting the image removed from the hosting site directly, since a cached or scraped copy can resurface in Images later.
What Google Won't Remove (and What to Do)
Google generally won't remove a result just because it's unflattering or because charges were later dropped — search engines aren't required to police the accuracy or fairness of indexed content, and U.S. law (Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act) largely shields platforms from liability for content they didn't create. That's the uncomfortable reality behind why mugshot sites can operate the way they do.
When a straightforward removal request won't work, the realistic fallback is suppression: building enough legitimate, positive, and relevant content about you that it outranks the mugshot result, combined with continued pressure on the source site and persistent de-indexing requests as pages get re-crawled.
How We Remove Mugshots From Google Permanently
We combine both steps above instead of relying on either alone: takedown requests to the publisher within 72 hours, and search-engine de-indexing pursued in parallel so the result stops showing even if the source page is slow to respond — typically within 5–7 days. Every case starts with a free analysis, and every case we take on is backed by a 100% money-back guarantee.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I remove my mugshot from Google for free?
Sometimes. Google's Results About You and Outdated Content Removal tools are free and can work for some cases, especially once the source page is already down. They don't guarantee removal and can't force a publisher to take a page down in the first place.
How do I remove my mugshot from Google Images?
Use the Results About You tool and search specifically within Google Images for your name. As with web results, removing the image at its source is more durable than de-indexing alone, since a cached copy can resurface.
How long does Google take to de-index a removed page?
Once a page is actually taken down or a valid removal request is approved, Google typically drops it from search results within about 5–7 days, though re-crawl timing can vary.
What if the website refuses to take my mugshot down?
You can still pursue de-indexing through Google directly, which stops the page from showing in search even if it technically still exists on the source site. This is exactly the situation our removal service is built to handle.
Does Google's "Results About You" tool remove mugshots?
It can, for some cases involving personal information, but approval isn't automatic or guaranteed. It's worth trying, but it's one tool among several, not a complete solution on its own.
Ready to Stop Doing This the Hard Way?
Get a free removal analysis — we'll handle both the source removal and the Google de-indexing.