A removal partner for PR agencies

Key facts for PR and communications agencies

Syndicated and aggregator versions of a story are often more workable than the original title.

An article can stop appearing in search results for a client's name while the piece itself stays exactly where it is, which is frequently what the client actually wants.

Laws such as GDPR give people rights over their personal data, which can matter for clients with European or UK ties.

An unflattering accurate piece is a different problem from a false one, and we tell you which you are dealing with.

In the United Kingdom in particular, an attempt to suppress accurate reporting is itself considered newsworthy, which is why assessment comes before anyone is contacted.

Harassment, impersonation and private information on social platforms can often be removed even where no court would order it.

Where removal starts and placement stops

You already know the moment. The statement has gone out, the relationships have been used, a right of reply has been offered and taken, and the piece is still the first result for the client's name. Everything left is legal, regulatory or technical rather than editorial, and it is decided by publishers, platforms and search engines rather than by anyone you can call. That is the layer we operate in, and it is deliberately not spin.

The second thing agencies bring us is the user generated layer, which does not respond to media relations at all. A coordinated pile on that starts on X, moves to screenshots on Instagram and Reddit, and then produces a story about the reaction rather than the original event. Attack blogs registered on the client's name. Review platform waves. None of that has an editor to call.

The third is speed. In a live crisis the first hours decide how far something travels, and the difference between acting at hour two and hour thirty is usually the difference between a contained problem and a permanent one.

What can realistically be achieved with published coverage?

Publishers are not obliged to remove lawful journalism, and no reputable firm claims otherwise. What can often be achieved is removal of inaccurate or intrusive material, action on syndicated and aggregator copies, and changes to what a search for a person's name returns, which is often exactly what your client is asking for.

Where litigation is right, that is your client's counsel's call and we support it rather than lead it. What will not move is accurate reporting on a matter of public interest, and we say that before anyone is contacted rather than after.

What we need from you to start

For the scan: the URLs, the client name and the search terms that matter. We map the coverage, the copies, the user generated layer and the search picture, and we send it back in writing. It is free, and it is yours and your client's to keep.

To go live we need written authority from the client, or from you where you hold authority to instruct. For an accuracy point we need the documents that prove the specific error, which is usually a court record, a company filing, correspondence or a contract, not a general denial. For personal information we need confirmation of which details are personal and accurate. For images, the licence position and who holds the copyright. For a defamation assessment, the exact wording and dated captures.

We also need the full history of contact with the publication. Who spoke to the reporter, what was said, whether anything was agreed off the record, and whether a lawyer has already written. Knowing it upfront is how good matters stay on track.

Timelines and what usually happens first

In a live crisis we respond the same day and start on the urgent items immediately. The written scan follows within a few business days for the fuller picture.

Beyond that, timelines depend on the publisher and the platform, and they are set out in writing once the links are known. We do not promise outcomes or dates, and we will not let you brief a client that something is coming down. What you get is a straight assessment of which items look workable, so the expectation you set with your client is one you can keep.

Why agencies bring removal work to us

Crises tempt clients into moves that extend the story: a legal letter as the opening move, a defensive message to the journalist, a long rebuttal on their own site, a payment to an attack site, deleted posts that were the evidence. Waiting out the news cycle rarely works either, because copies keep settling into search long after coverage stops.

Agencies bring us in so that the removal layer is handled by specialists while they focus on the narrative. We work quickly, quietly and behind your brand, and we give you a straight assessment you can share with your client.

Before you call, ask your client to preserve what has been published and to talk to us before they take any action.

How we work behind your agency

You keep the client. We work behind you, report to you, and stay out of the room unless you want us in it. Many of our agency relationships never introduce us by name to the end client at all, and the reporting we send is formatted so you can forward it under your own brand. Our white label content removal page and partner program set out the two structures agencies use.

Where the client's counsel is engaged, we coordinate so that nothing we do compromises a legal claim, and we are happy to be instructed through the firm where privilege matters. Where there is an in house communications team, we agree who owns which URLs so nothing is worked twice or briefed as resolved while it is still open. Where a security team is involved, personal data removals usually serve both purposes and we share the same record.

We sign your NDA or provide ours, we never disclose client names, and anything we publish about our work is anonymized. Discretion is the product, not a feature of it.

Who makes first contact and what the 15-minute call covers

It is usually the account director or the agency principal, often during a live matter and often before the client has been told that outside help is being considered. That is fine. Nothing happens externally until you instruct it, and we do not contact your client.

The 15-minute call is a triage. You give us the URLs and the history, we tell you which items we can act on, which are opinion or accurate reporting that will stand, and what the risk of each approach is, including the risk of a second story. You come off the call able to give your client a defensible position rather than a hopeful one.

Fees are discussed on the call and set out in writing after the free Exposure Scan, once the links are known. Agencies that bring matters regularly usually move to a standing arrangement so a new crisis does not start with a procurement conversation. Our process page describes each stage, and our press practice page covers the placement side that sits alongside this work.