How to Remove Yourself From Unmask.com

To opt out of Unmask, go to unmask.com, follow the site’s opt-out or “remove my information” link, search for your record by name and location, and request removal of each listing that matches you. If the form doesn’t work for you, look for a privacy contact on the site’s FAQ or privacy pages. The opt-out should be free, and because new public records can create new listings, it’s worth checking again every few months.

The Unmask opt out is one of the simpler ones, but there are two traps: people with several past addresses often have more than one listing, and removal from Unmask doesn’t touch the dozens of other sites showing the same data. This guide covers both. For a plan that covers many sites at once, see our guide to removing yourself from people-search sites.

What Unmask is and what it shows

Unmask.com markets itself as a free people-search and public records lookup site. A listing can show your name, age, current and past addresses, phone numbers and possible relatives or associates, pulled together from public records and other databases.

One point applies to Unmask as it does to almost every people-search site: much of the information comes from public databases the site doesn’t control and can’t delete. So an opt-out removes your details from what Unmask shows, but the underlying records still exist at the source, such as a county property office or a voter file. That’s worth knowing before you start.

Listings are usually organized by person and location. If you’ve lived in several cities, you may find a separate listing for different periods of your life, and each one needs its own request.

Before you start

• Set up a separate email address. Use one inbox just for privacy requests. It keeps opt-out correspondence in one place and avoids handing your main address to another database.
• List your name variations. Maiden or married names, nicknames, versions with and without a middle initial, and common misspellings.
• List the places you’ve lived. Cities and states from roughly the last decade or two. Unmask searches by location, so this list drives how thorough your search is.
• Start from Unmask’s own domain. Type unmask.com into your browser and follow the opt-out link from the site. Ads for “removal” services can look similar and may charge you for something that’s free.

Step by step: the Unmask opt-out

1. Open the opt-out page. On unmask.com, find the link for opting out or removing your information. On most people-search sites it sits in the footer or on the FAQ or privacy pages.
2. Search for your record. The opt-out page usually asks for your name and a location, and may show a captcha. Use the details the form asks for; you don’t need to volunteer more.
3. Check the matches carefully. Compare the age, cities and relatives against your own. With a common name, it’s easy to pick a stranger’s record.
4. Request removal of your listing. Select the record that’s yours and follow the on-screen prompt to remove it. Note or screenshot any confirmation message.
5. Repeat for every other listing. Search again with each name variation and each past city. Submit a request for every listing that belongs to you.
6. Keep a log. Record the date, the name and location you searched, and what you removed. You’ll use it when you check back.

Processing times vary and we couldn’t confirm a current timeline on Unmask’s own pages, so give it a week or two, then repeat your searches to confirm the listings no longer show your details. The steps on the page can change, so if something looks different from this description, follow what the page itself says.

Using the email route

The email route helps if the form can’t find your record, keeps timing out, or you’d rather have a written trail. A short, plain message works best.

Subject line: Opt-out request. Message: Please remove my information from Unmask.com people search results. Name: [full name]. Locations shown on the listing: [city, state]. Listing link, if available: [URL]. Please confirm when this has been done.

Include the listing’s link if you have it, because it removes guesswork. Don’t attach an ID or share your Social Security number unless the company’s privacy page specifically requires it and you’re comfortable with that.

Your state privacy rights

If you live in a state with a comprehensive consumer privacy law, you may have rights to know what data a company holds, to have it deleted, and to opt out of its sale. Check Unmask’s privacy policy for how it takes these requests; some sites have a separate privacy-rights page for them. A deletion request can go further than a simple opt-out, so it’s worth using if it applies to you.

California residents have another tool. Under the California Delete Act, the state privacy agency runs the Delete Request and Opt-out Platform (DROP), which lets residents send one deletion request to registered data brokers. It’s a helpful backstop, but it doesn’t replace checking the sites yourself. State laws differ and change, so check the current rules where you live.

What the opt-out covers and what it doesn’t

Item	Covered by the Unmask opt-out?
The listing you requested removal for	Yes, once processed.
Other Unmask listings for you under a different name or city	No. Each needs its own request.
The original public records	No. The source databases sit with courts, counties and other agencies.
Other people-search sites	No. Each has its own process.
The Google result pointing to the old listing	Not straight away. Google updates after it recrawls the page or you request a refresh.

Why an Unmask listing can come back

Public record databases refresh. A new lease, a property purchase, a new phone line or a change of name can all generate a record that doesn’t match the one you removed, so a fresh listing can appear. That’s not a failure of the opt-out; it’s new data.

• Search yourself on Unmask every three to four months.
• Search again soon after you move, marry or change your number.
• Use the same privacy inbox for repeat requests so your history is easy to find.

Clean up the Google result

People-search pages often rank for a person’s name, and the snippet can keep showing your city or age after the listing is gone. Once the Unmask page no longer shows your details, use Google’s “Refresh outdated content” tool to ask Google to update the result.

Google’s “Results about you” tool can also flag search results that show your phone number, home address or email, and lets you ask Google to remove them from its results. Our guide to Results about you walks through it.

A worked example

This is an illustrative scenario, not a real client.

Marcus, a high school teacher, finds an Unmask listing that shows his current street address and his mother’s name. He’d assumed there was only one listing.

• He sets up a new email address just for privacy requests and opens the opt-out page from the Unmask site.
• He searches his name with his current city, finds the listing and requests removal.
• He searches again with the city where he went to college and finds a second, older listing with a previous phone number. He removes that too.
• The form can’t find a third listing he’d seen in a Google result, so he emails Unmask with the link and asks for removal.
• A week later all three no longer show his details. He submits a refresh request for the Google snippet and sets a reminder to check again in four months.

His searches by past city found a listing that a single name search would have missed.

Common mistakes

• Searching only your current city. Older listings tied to past addresses are common. Search every place you’ve lived.
• Removing the wrong person. Check age and relatives before you confirm.
• Paying for removal. The official opt-out is free. A site asking you to pay to remove your Unmask listing isn’t Unmask.
• Sending more ID than needed. Give only what the company asks for to verify a request.
• Stopping at one site. The same data usually appears on many other people-search sites. InfoTracer and PeopleWhiz, for example, each need their own request.

Where to go next

Once Unmask is done, work through the sites that tend to carry the same records. Our guides on how to remove yourself from FastPeopleSearch and the PeopleConnect opt-out cover a free site and a large family of paid ones. Our data broker opt-out list helps you track the rest in one place.

When to get help

Most people can finish an Unmask opt-out in one sitting. Help makes sense when you’re listed on dozens of sites, when a safety concern means records need to come down quickly and be watched closely, or when people-search listings are only one part of a wider problem with what appears for your name. Our personal reputation management service handles opt-outs, re-checks and the wider cleanup, and we’ll be honest about what can be removed and what needs ongoing monitoring.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Unmask opt-out free?

It should be. A legitimate people-search opt-out doesn’t require you to buy anything. If a page asks for payment to remove your Unmask listing, you’re not on Unmask’s own opt-out page.

How long does Unmask take to remove my information?

There’s no set timeline, and we couldn’t confirm a current one on Unmask’s own pages. Check again after a week or two. Google may keep showing an old result for longer until it recrawls the page or you submit a refresh request.

Does opting out of Unmask delete my public records?

No. People-search data largely comes from public databases the site doesn’t control. The opt-out stops Unmask from showing your details, but the source records still exist and may appear on other sites.

Can I opt out of Unmask by email?

If the form doesn’t work, look for a privacy or contact email on Unmask’s FAQ or privacy pages and send your request there. Expect it may verify your identity before acting on the request.