How to Stop Unauthorized Use of Your Name and Image on the Internet

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The Internet has ushered in a time of limitless opportunity and boundless growth in every part of our daily lives. We can click on the app of our favorite news organization to get breaking news on our smartphones, play Scrabble with someone halfway around the world or be transported to the red barren landscape of Mars with one click of the mouse. Enter the blogosphere, as the world of blogs is called, and entries ranging from the highly informative to the cruel and untrue are waiting to be read.


Use of your personal information on the Internet by those who are unauthorized to do so can result in damage to your name and reputation presenting a challenge that seems too big to overcome but thankfully there are things we can do to protect ourselves.

Here are steps you can take to have your name, photo and other personal information removed from websites and forums where it has been used without your consent:

1. Contact the company or individuals who posted the information
Direct contact can be a first step to rectifying the matter. Ask that your photo, name and other information be removed in writing.

2. Report abuse to the website where your information appears

 If the company or individual is uncooperative report abuse directly to the website or blog. Click on the area marked "report abuse" or "contact us" and write an email and send a letter or fax. Make your complaint as detailed as possible and follow up until your personal information has been taken down.

3. Contact local law enforcement officials

 The act of using your name, photo and other personal information can be a crime if someone is engaging in cyberbullying, using it to earn money and for a host of other reasons.

4. Get a lawyer

 According to the Chicago Police Department, the unauthorized use of a person's name, photo and other personal information on the Internet is a civil matter and can be successfully tried in court.

6. Fight back on the Internet

 Get online and make it clear that your information was used without your consent by the offending parties. There are two sides to every story. Make sure the world knows yours is the truth.

Author: Chanel Polk

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