Finding false information about yourself online can be unsettling. It might be a social media post, an article, review, forum comment or website that presents misleading claims as fact.
The first reaction is often to respond immediately. In many cases, that is not the best place to start.
If someone is publishing lies about you, the right response depends on what has been published, where it appears, how serious the harm is and whether the content can be challenged or removed.
For Australian individuals, professionals, businesses and personal brands, dealing with online reputation problems can involve several different approaches, including platform complaints, legal advice, content removal requests, search engine optimization, digital PR and ongoing reputation monitoring.
Someone Is Publishing Lies About Me — What Should I Do?
Start by documenting what has happened before taking action.
Save:
- Screenshots of the content
- The URL of every page involved
- The username or profile responsible
- Dates and times of publication
- Relevant emails or messages
- Comments or posts connected to the issue
- Evidence showing why a particular claim is inaccurate
- Any evidence of financial, professional or reputational harm
Do not assume that content will remain online. Posts can be edited or deleted, accounts can disappear and websites can change.
Keeping a clear record gives you something to work from when contacting the publisher, platform, lawyer or reputation management specialist.
The eSafety Commissioner similarly recommends collecting evidence such as URLs, usernames and screenshots when dealing with serious online abuse.
Is It Defamation or Simply Someone’s Opinion?
Not everything that is unpleasant, unfair or negative will necessarily amount to defamation.
There is an important difference between someone expressing an opinion and publishing a factual allegation that may seriously damage someone’s reputation.
For example:
I don’t like this person’s business.
is generally different from publishing an untrue factual allegation about what that person supposedly did.
Australian defamation law is jurisdiction-specific, and the applicable rules can depend on the circumstances of the publication. Modern Australian defamation laws also include a serious harm requirement. For example, the Victorian Defamation Act 2005 is currently in force, while equivalent legislation operates across Australia’s other jurisdictions.
If you believe a publication may be defamatory, speak with an Australian lawyer who handles defamation matters. A digital marketing agency cannot determine whether particular material is legally defamatory or advise you on litigation.
That distinction matters.
Reputation management and legal action can work alongside one another, but they are not the same thing.
Where Are the Lies Being Published?
The location of the content can affect what you can realistically do about it.
False or damaging information might appear on:
- Google search results
- Social media
- Review websites
- Blogs
- Forums
- News websites
- Business directories
- Industry websites
- Personal websites
- Online publications
- Video platforms
- Comments sections
The first objective should usually be to identify the original source rather than focusing only on the Google result.
For example, if an article appears in Google, removing the search result is not necessarily the same as removing the article itself.
Likewise, if a social media post is being circulated, reporting the post to the platform may be more appropriate than trying to address the resulting search visibility.
Can You Get False Information Removed?
Sometimes.
There is no universal process for removing information from the internet. The available options depend on the platform, publisher, type of content and circumstances.
You may be able to:
- Report content that breaches a platform’s rules.
- Contact the website owner or publisher.
- Request a correction or removal.
- Ask a lawyer to communicate with the publisher.
- Use an applicable regulatory or complaint process.
- Seek legal remedies where appropriate.
- Address the search visibility of the content through reputation management.
For serious online abuse, Australian adults may also be able to report qualifying material to the eSafety Commissioner after first reporting it to the relevant service or platform. However, eSafety’s adult cyber abuse scheme has a specific legal threshold and is not a general-purpose defamation removal service. Residents and companies across Europe may have rights under the GDPR such as the Right To Be Forgotten.
That means it is important to choose the right pathway rather than treating every negative search result as the same type of problem.
What If the Website Refuses to Remove It?
This is where the situation can become more complicated.
A website may refuse your request. The publisher may be anonymous. The website may be located overseas. Or the material may remain online despite a dispute about its accuracy.
At that point, there may be several separate issues to consider:
Legal options
If the publication may be defamatory or otherwise unlawful, obtain legal advice about your circumstances.
A lawyer can assess the material and explain whether a formal legal response is appropriate.
Platform or publisher complaints
Some websites have processes for reporting inaccurate, abusive or policy-violating material.
Where available, follow the platform’s prescribed process and keep records of your complaint.
Search visibility
If the original material cannot reasonably be removed, another question becomes important:
What does someone see when they search your name or business?
This is where search engine optimization and reputation management can become relevant.
What If the Lies Appear in Google?
Google does not simply remove every search result because someone disputes the information contained on a webpage.
There is also an important distinction between:
Removing content from the internet
and
Changing what appears prominently in search results.
If the source remains online, an SEO-based reputation strategy may focus on developing and strengthening other relevant, accurate and authoritative content associated with the individual, business or personal brand.
That might include:
- Improving an existing website
- Creating useful profile and biography pages
- Publishing authoritative company information
- Developing thought-leadership content
- Creating positive informational resources
- Building relevant backlinks
- Publishing legitimate news and announcements
- Strengthening existing positive search results
- Improving the overall branded search landscape
This does not mean pretending negative information does not exist. It means building a stronger and more accurate digital presence around the person or organisation.
How Online Reputation Management Can Help
Online reputation management is broader than deleting a bad review or asking Google to remove a webpage.
A properly planned reputation strategy considers the whole search environment around a person, business or brand.
An initial reputation assessment may examine:
- Branded Google searches
- Negative search results
- Positive and neutral results
- Third-party publications
- Review profiles
- Social media profiles
- Existing website content
- News coverage
- Backlink profiles
- Competing search results
- Opportunities to create stronger authoritative content
The objective is to understand what people are likely to see and determine which parts of that online presence can realistically be improved.
For businesses, this can form part of a broader Online Reputation Management strategy covering search visibility, reviews, content, digital PR and ongoing monitoring.
Online Reputation Repair Requires a Different Approach
A reputation problem does not always disappear when one webpage is removed.
Information can be copied, discussed elsewhere, indexed by search engines or associated with a person’s name long after the original incident.
That is why Online Reputation Repair can involve rebuilding the broader digital footprint rather than focusing on one isolated URL.
Depending on the situation, this may involve:
- Identifying damaging search results
- Improving authoritative pages
- Creating accurate supporting content
- Strengthening relevant websites
- Developing digital PR opportunities
- Building legitimate online authority
- Monitoring changes in search results
- Addressing new reputation issues as they emerge
The appropriate strategy depends on the existing search landscape. A campaign for a professional with ten years of positive online coverage will look very different from one involving an individual whose name is dominated by a single negative article.
Reputation Management for Individuals and Personal Brands
Individuals can face particularly difficult reputation problems because their name may be the primary search term associated with their professional identity.
This can affect:
- Directors and executives
- Business owners
- Professionals
- Consultants
- Public-facing specialists
- Entrepreneurs
- Creators
- Speakers
- Authors
- Founders
- Personal brands
A personal reputation strategy can focus on making accurate information easier to find when someone searches the individual’s name.
This may involve professional biographies, company profiles, interviews, articles, thought leadership, media coverage and other legitimate digital assets.
AGR Technology also provides Online Reputation Management for Individuals and Personal Brands where the focus is on strengthening a person’s professional digital presence rather than simply managing business reviews.
Should You Respond Publicly?
Sometimes the best response is no response.
A public argument can give a damaging post additional attention, create new material for search engines to index and make an otherwise isolated incident more visible.
Before responding, consider:
- Is the claim reaching a meaningful audience?
- Is the publisher influential?
- Is the content likely to appear in branded searches?
- Can the claim be corrected privately?
- Does the platform provide a reporting mechanism?
- Could a public response make the situation worse?
- Is there a legal reason to avoid contacting the other party directly?
If you do respond publicly, keep the response factual and professional.
Avoid making additional accusations that you cannot substantiate.
What About Fake Reviews?
Fake or misleading reviews are a related but separate reputation issue.
If a review appears to violate a platform’s policies, the appropriate first step is generally to report it through the platform’s available process.
At the same time, businesses should not build their entire reputation strategy around trying to remove every negative review.
A stronger long-term approach can include:
- Encouraging genuine customer feedback
- Responding professionally to legitimate complaints
- Identifying potentially fraudulent reviews
- Improving the customer experience
- Building positive branded content
- Monitoring review platforms
- Developing a stronger overall online presence
The aim is not to create a profile where nobody ever says anything negative. Real businesses receive criticism. The goal is to ensure that one misleading or disproportionate piece of content does not define the entire online presence.
What If the Person Is Anonymous?
An anonymous account can make the situation harder, but it does not necessarily mean there is nothing you can do.
First, preserve evidence.
Do not assume that an anonymous profile will remain available. Record the relevant URLs, account information, screenshots and dates before reporting or blocking the account.
If the material involves serious online abuse, eSafety states that it may investigate qualifying adult cyber abuse even when the targeted person does not know who is responsible. eSafety also notes that it does not provide the identity of a person behind an anonymous or fake account.
If you believe you may have a legal claim, obtain independent legal advice.
What Not to Do When Someone Is Spreading Lies About You
It is understandable to want to fight back. But several reactions can make an online reputation problem harder to manage.
Avoid:
- Threatening the person online
- Creating fake accounts to attack them
- Publishing unverified allegations in response
- Harassing the publisher
- Paying questionable removal services without understanding what they actually do
- Deleting evidence before documenting it
- Making promises about facts you cannot prove
- Assuming every negative result can be removed from Google
The internet has a long memory. A response written in anger can become part of the reputation problem itself.
When Should You Get Professional Help?
Consider getting professional assistance when the issue is becoming difficult to manage yourself or is affecting your professional or personal reputation.
This may be appropriate when:
- Your name is appearing alongside damaging search results
- False information ranks prominently in Google
- Negative content is appearing across multiple websites
- Your business is receiving suspicious or misleading reviews
- The issue is affecting customer inquiries
- Your professional reputation is being affected
- You are unsure which content should be addressed first
- The problem has continued for an extended period
- You need an ongoing reputation monitoring strategy
The right specialist depends on the problem.
A lawyer is appropriate for legal questions. A platform or regulator may be appropriate for qualifying online abuse or policy violations. A digital agency can help with the search, content, SEO, digital PR and online visibility side of reputation management.
How AGR Technology Approaches Online Reputation Management
AGR Technology takes a digital approach to reputation management.
Rather than promising that every negative webpage can be removed, the focus is on understanding the existing online footprint and identifying practical opportunities to improve it.
Depending on the situation, this can involve:
- Reputation and search-result analysis
- SEO strategy
- Content development
- On-page optimization
- Link building
- Digital PR
- News and media content
- Branded search optimization
- Review and reputation strategy
- Ongoing monitoring
This combination is useful because reputation problems rarely sit neatly inside one marketing channel.
A negative article may require a different response from a fake review. A misleading social media post may require a platform complaint. A persistent branded search result may require a longer-term SEO and content strategy.
AGR can help with the digital side of that process while recognizing when an issue should be referred to a legal professional or another appropriate authority.
A Practical Reputation Recovery Process
If someone is publishing lies about you, a sensible starting framework is:
1. Document the problem
Capture the content, URLs, profiles, dates and supporting evidence.
2. Assess the situation
Determine what is actually being said, where it appears and how visible it is.
3. Identify the appropriate response
This may involve the publisher, platform, regulator, lawyer or digital reputation specialist.
4. Address removable content where appropriate
Use legitimate platform, publisher or regulatory processes.
5. Strengthen accurate information
Develop useful, authoritative content that properly represents the person, business or brand.
6. Improve search visibility
Use SEO, content and digital PR to strengthen relevant assets.
7. Monitor the situation
Continue checking important branded searches and reputation signals rather than treating the issue as a one-off task.
This approach recognizes an important reality: you cannot control everything that other people publish, but you can take control of many parts of your own digital presence.
Need Help With an Online Reputation Problem?
If someone is publishing false or damaging information about you, the first step is to understand exactly what is happening before deciding how to respond.
AGR Technology can assess the digital side of the problem and help develop a practical strategy around SEO, content, digital PR, search visibility and reputation monitoring.
If the matter involves potential defamation, threats or other legal issues, obtain advice from an appropriately qualified Australian legal professional as well.
Contact AGR Technology to discuss your online reputation and find out what options may be available for your situation.
Note: The following content is not legal advice and is intended to be an informational resource for individuals wanting to learn more or request assistance with right to be forgotten requests.
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Alessio Rigoli is the founder of AGR Technology and got his start working in the IT space originally in Education and then in the private sector helping businesses in various industries. Alessio maintains the blog and is interested in a number of different topics emerging and current such as Digital marketing, Software development, Cryptocurrency/Blockchain, Cyber security, Linux and more.
Alessio Rigoli, AGR Technology