How to Remove Online Defamation

In the age of the internet, it is extremely important to remove online defamation against you. This can negatively impact your reputation and severely damage your prospects.

If defamatory content is posted against you online and you are wondering how to remove it, then keep on reading. In this article, we discuss every strategy that you can use to remove online defamation against you.

Remove online defamation by contacting the author

It is a good idea to contact the author or originator of the content and request them to remove the content. You will need to take the following steps for this:

• Identify the author of online defamation
• Find contact details and location of the author
• Draft a letter with reasons for requesting removal of online defamation

While we suggest contacting the author, keep in mind that it is quite unlikely for the author to take down content voluntarily.

Remove online defamation by hiring an expert.

Several online reputation management companies can help to remove online defamation. These companies have a wide range of experience in online harassment, content removal and defamation. Some of the strategies include:

• An online reputation management company can help you locate the author and send notices to remove content. This definitely creates a more significant impact than sending letters personally.
• An online reputation management company works with search engines such as Google and Bing. These companies can lodge a request to delete content from the search engine index if posting defamatory content violates their policies.
• Online reputation management companies have agreements with ISPs across the globe. They can submit direct requests to block or remove content.

Remove online defamation through defamation law.

If all fails, you should take legal action to remove online defamation. Defamation is a crime with civil and criminal liability. This means that you can request monetary compensation or even a criminal trial if someone has posted defamatory content against you.

If you decide to take legal action, it is best to hire an online defamation lawyer. Defamation lawyers are experts in the law on defamation along with your rights to request the removal of content. This can be quite difficult to deal with without any legal expertise.

Prior to approaching the court, the lawyer will probably send legal notices to the author or originator of the content. The legal notice will stress the need to remove  defamation by highlighting its legal violations.

This is usually quite successful, and the originator will remove defamatory content against you upon receiving a legal notice. If not, you have the option of going to court and suing the author.

Remove online defamation through GDPR

Even if you cannot remove online defamation against you under the defamation law, you still have recourse under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). As per this, if you wish to remove data against you, you can submit a request online.

All you need to do is fill a form arguing that the information is not relevant; it was posted without your consent or unlawfully collected. The GDPR provides a right to the erasure of such information.

This will ensure that the information is permanently removed and cannot be found by anyone online. For doing this, you should hire a right to be forgotten lawyer who has experience in using GDPR to delete information permanently.

Conclusion

We suggest that if anyone has posted defamatory content against you, you should take quick action to remove online defamation. As online reputation is crucial in today’s era, you should not let negative content against you on the web.

We understand that removing online defamation is very time consuming and mentally challenging. Due to this, you should hire an expert in the field who has experience in this field.

FAQ

1. Is online defamation illegal?

Yes, online defamation is illegal. If someone is posting defamatory content against you, you can take legal action to remove the same.

2. Is it possible o remove online defamation?

Yes, you can either file a personal request, hire an expert or take legal action.

3. Can a lawyer remove online defamation?

Yes, a lawyer can initiate legal action to remove defamatory content.