Emma (28) wants her telephone number removed from the Internet because of her ex
I’m a happy single. Finally. Glad that I got rid of my ex. Our relationship started off all lovey-dovey. But once we moved in together, his true colours emerged. He became more and more jealous. It still gives me the chills thinking about it. It wasn’t an easy decision, but I left him. Moved back in with my parents. Not ideal, but I had no choice. Fortunately, after a few months, I found my own apartment.
I set my socials to private and took out a new telephone number
My ex doesn’t know where I live and I would like to keep it that way. This is because he kept harassing me after I broke up with him. One time I received aggressive texts and then suddenly I would find a bouquet of flowers at my door. It drove me crazy. I set my socials to private and took out a new telephone number, so he can’t reach me anymore, ever again. I haven’t heard anything from him since.
But when I googled myself recently, I was shocked to see my new telephone number come up. On a website that I don’t even know. I’ve no idea how they got my information. I immediately looked for the contact information on that site. But I couldn’t find any. That frustrated me enormously! I mean someone must manage that site, right?
My number just has to be taken off that site, now!
I found a solution online: you can find the owner of a website by consulting the website of the Foundation for Internet Domain Registration in the Netherlands (SIDN). So I emailed the owner. Only I didn’t get an answer. Which is when I started to panic a bit. My number just has to be taken off that site, now! So I decided to call the Data Protection Authority, because I really didn’t know what else to do.
At the DPA, they explained that I can file a complaint with them about the owner of that website, because he does not respond to my request to delete my information. But they immediately went on to say that it will take a long time before they can handle that complaint.
Luckily they also had a faster solution: submitting a request for removal to Google
Luckily they also had a faster solution: submitting a request for removal to Google. I never knew you could that. Google will then make sure you no longer appear in their search results. So if someone googles my name, my telephone number is no longer listed. That seemed like a good solution to me.
The DPA further assured me that they can mediate on my behalf if Google does not cooperate. I have now submitted both a complaint to the DPA, because ultimately my number simply has to be removed from that site, plus a request for removal to Google. So now I just have to wait a little longer for Google’s answer and then I hope I can breathe a sigh of relief!
Did you know that...
- Someone publishing your personal data on the internet is not allowed in most cases, unless you have given permission for this?
- You have the right to be “forgotten”? This means that you can ask an organisation to delete your personal data. For this you can use our template letter for the deletion of personal data.
- You can ask a search engine to remove certain search results? The search engine is not always obliged to cooperate. But you can ask the DPA to mediate if the search engine rejects your request.
* The privacy stories on this website are based on actual reports to the Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA). Due to the privacy of those involved, the personal data and some circumstances have been changed. We use models (stock photography) for the images in these stories.
Why is protecting personal data so important? These people share what happened to them.