Why Developers Should Care About Removing Personal Data from Google

It is surprising how much of your data is truly out there. If you don’t believe us, simply type your name or alias into Google. Everything, from old forum posts and cached resumes to even leaked private information, can be commonly found with just a simple search query. This is very common for individuals in all industries, but especially for developers. Only because it is known that their work places them at the intersection of technology and heaps of sensitive data, this makes exposure of personal information a consistent risk that requires attention. 

If you have just found out that your data is publicly available, the natural response is to resolve the issue and regain privacy. Luckily, you can delete personal information from Google through select services and data removal requests. However, this will only prevent Google from indexing and showcasing your data, which means that it is still out there on the discarded social media profile or old employer directory. This is where accurate data removal comes in. By sending data removal requests to all pages that host your data, you can regain your privacy. Here, we will explore how critical this process truly is and the many risks associated with ignoring your digital footprint and leaked data. 

Risks for developers

It is dangerous for everyone to be victims of data leakage, but what makes it worse for developers is their technical visibility. This makes them bigger targets and more susceptible to risk as long as they ignore their digital footprint and privacy. Some of the most common risks that come with leaked personal data are: 

• Phishing and social engineering – Cybercriminals use specially crafted phishing emails and messages disguised as projects, job offers, client inquiries, and many other formats to target developers. They make these attacks more realistic by utilising publicly available data to make the scam more realistic and increase its chance of success.
• Identity theft – By simply picking up your email address, birth date, or exposed phone number online, cybercriminals can impersonate you. For individuals, this means that with enough persistence and a crack in a system, cybercriminals can commit fraudulent activity. From opening bank accounts that can compromise financial security or gain access to work-related platforms, they can significantly hurt the livelihood of anyone targeted. 
• Doxxing – The act of doxxing is always a looming threat, especially to those who want to keep their privacy. Cybercriminals often use collected personal data to extort funds out of individuals by threatening them with doxxing. As no one wants their place of residence published publicly, it is a very serious issue that needs to be addressed. 

Each of these risks carries its own weight in the issues it creates, but there is another underlying issue: reputational damage. No matter if you are a freelancer, employee, or CEO, any security breaches significantly impact your reputation in the market. This damage can go even further if the goal of the cybercriminal is to specifically ruin your reputation or the reputation of your business.

Professional responsibility

Beyond personal risk and reputational damage, there are other risks developers need to consider. The most prominent is their responsibility to handle sensitive user data and integrate it into systems they create. So, if developers neglect their own privacy, it can lead to this data getting leaked and creating issues for all connected to the business. As such, it is incredibly important that developers don’t undermine their privacy and ignore potential threats.

This wasn’t so prevalent a few years ago, but as data has become an increasingly valuable asset, cyber attacks are more common. Because of this, effective security protocols are no longer an afterthought, but a priority for anyone working in the field. Industries have already started to train their employees to protect their own data and have effective protocols to handle all communication and work. By teaching individuals about common phishing strategies and other web security attacks and ways to identify them, companies are combating data leakage. This process has already proven its worth and reduced the number of breaches that occur daily. However, the space is tricky, as no matter how quickly someone adapts, cybercriminals are faster. This creates a need for constant monitoring and following of trends to uncover new scams before you encounter them.

Steps you can take

Protecting your online identity is a very time-consuming process that works well when executed meticulously. The best steps you can take to protect and remove your personal data are: 

1. Assess Your Digital Footprint – Search for your name and other relevant information to see where and how much of your data is stored. By learning its origin, you or automated tools can directly send data removal requests and give you back your privacy. 
2. Audit Old Accounts – Old social media, blog, or developer accounts are all sources of personal data. By deleting them outright or simply updating security and privacy settings, you can minimize data leakage. 
3. Utilize Data Removal – People have the right to be forgotten and protect their data. This is realised by governing parties and data protection standards that hold data brokers and companies accountable. To enact your right to be forgotten, you can manually submit data removal requests or speed up the process with data removal services.
4. Use Privacy Tools – Switching to tools that have better privacy options helps reduce your digital footprint. As a result, this will reduce how much of your data is initially out there, preventing data brokers from collecting data and building detailed profiles. You can also fragment your digital footprint by separating activities such as work and entertainment across select devices and browsers. 

These are all great ways to take control of your data and remove it from unwanted indexes. Just know that data removal is not a process completed after one session. To truly remain private and control your data, you will need to always keep it in mind. By regularly auditing your accounts and digital footprint, you will ensure that you are protected and will maintain your reputation. So make sure to keep up with privacy trends and effectively implement them into your everyday digital life.