Google DMCA: how to remove pirated links from search

Google's DMCA process lets a copyright owner ask Google to remove specific infringing URLs from its search results, using the copyright removal form in Google's Report Content tool. It delists the pages from Google Search; it does not delete the files from the sites that host them, so pair every request with a takedown at the host. List each URL exactly and describe your course; Google says it processes Search requests in about six hours on average.

What Google's copyright removal does, and doesn't do

Knowing the limits saves wasted requests. According to Google's Transparency Report FAQ and its anti-piracy pages, the process will:

• remove the specific URLs you list from Google Search results;
  
  
• accept URLs that are not yet in Google's index, so they don't show up later;
  
  
• notify site owners who have registered their site in Search Console;
  
  
• count valid notices against a site as a signal, so that a site with many of them can be pushed down in results as a whole.
  
  

It won't:

• delete the content from the website or file host;
  
  
• remove a whole website because you listed its home page;
  
  
• decide who owns a work when that is disputed;
  
  
• act on requests that lack exact URLs or explain too little.
  
  

Google also says it may decline URLs when it can't find the content you describe, when the process seems to be misused, or when the use looks like fair use. Pages that merely discuss or review your course are not infringing, so leave them out.

Search your course name like a student looking for a free copy

Students don't search for "leaks". They type your course name with words that promise a free copy. Run the same searches every week, in English and in Hindi or your teaching language:

• "[course name] free download" and "[course name] pdf"
  
  
• "[teacher name] [batch name] telegram"
  
  
• "[course name] drive link" and "[course name] mega link"
  
  
• "[institute name] paid course free"
  
  
• "[test series name] answer key pdf"
  
  

Also look at the suggestions Google shows as you type your course name; they reveal what people are searching for.

Sort what you find into two kinds. Pages that host the file, such as a PDF site or a page with an embedded video, need a takedown at the host as well as a delisting. Pages that only link elsewhere, such as a blog post pointing to a Mega folder or a Telegram channel, need a delisting here plus a report at the destination.

A worked example (illustrative numbers)

Say a weekly search for a UPSC Mains answer-writing course turns up 34 results: 20 blog posts linking to Mega folders, 9 pages of a PDF site hosting the course notes, and 5 public Telegram channels. The plan: one Google request listing all 34 URLs, with the course described once; a Mega notice for the folders the blog posts point to; a notice to the PDF site or its host; and Telegram reports for the five channels. A week later, run the same searches again. Delisted pages drop out, but any new post with a fresh link needs a fresh request.

Filing a copyright removal request

1. Open Google's Report Content for legal reasons page and select Create a request.
   
   
2. Choose Google Search as the product, then the intellectual property and copyright options.
   
   
3. Give your contact details and say whether you are the owner or act for the institute that owns the course.
   
   
4. Describe the copyrighted work: course, batch, lecture titles and a link to where it is sold.
   
   
5. List every infringing URL exactly as it appears in the browser. A site's home page is not enough.
   
   
6. Agree to the good faith and accuracy statements and sign by typing your full legal name.
   
   
7. Submit. Google emails a confirmation with a reference number.
   
   

If the same content appears in more than one Google product, say in Search and on Google Drive, Google asks for a separate notice for each product. Pages that offer tools for getting around your course's protection fall under a separate circumvention option in the same form, which only the rights holder, its representative or a licensed vendor can use.

The form follows the notice format of the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which Google uses for owners worldwide. Our explainer on whether DMCA applies in India covers what that means legally.

Tracking your requests and outcomes

People often search for a "Google DMCA dashboard". What matters in practice sits on each request: Google emails a confirmation and a reference number, and may write back asking for more details. File every request from one Google account that the institute controls, so the history stays in one place, and copy each reference number into your leak log.

Two public records follow a request. Google may share a copy of the notice with Lumen, a Harvard project that publishes takedown notices; for copyright notices this generally includes the requester's name, the rights holder's name and the reported URLs, but never the contact details you entered. Google's Transparency Report also publishes copyright removal data by website and by copyright owner. If you'd rather your personal name didn't appear, have an authorised representative file for the institute.

If a site owner files a counter-notice, Google may reinstate the link unless you show within 10 days that you have filed a court action against them.

High volumes: the Trusted Copyright Removal Program

Google also runs a Trusted Copyright Removal Program (TCRP) for Search. In its 2018 report "How Google Fights Piracy", Google described it as a bulk route for copyright owners and enforcement agents with a track record of accurate notices and a consistent need to submit thousands of pages a day. Few institutes reach that scale on their own. If you hire an anti-piracy vendor, ask whether it files through TCRP and how it checks each URL before submitting it in your name, because inaccurate notices reflect on you.

Court orders and whole-site problems

The copyright form works URL by URL. For a site that exists only to share pirated courses, two other levers matter. Many valid notices against the same site feed Google's demotion signal. And if an Indian court has ruled specific pages unlawful, you can send the order through the same Report Content tool, under other legal issues and then court order, with the order, the URLs, the content on each page and the part of the order that requires removal. Google says it may remove content voluntarily when an order identifies specific URLs. Court routes are covered in dynamic injunctions against pirate sites.

Drive-hosted copies need a separate report

Delisting a blog post that links to a Google Drive folder leaves the folder working for everyone who already has the link. Report the Drive file itself through the same legal form, choosing Google Drive as the product; our guide to reporting Google Drive and Mega links covers both lockers. The Telegram channel that shared the link needs its own report too: see reporting Telegram channels. Search delisting is one step in a wider course leak response plan.

Key takeaways

• Google's copyright form removes URLs from Search, not content from the web.
  
  
• List exact URLs and describe the original; home pages and vague descriptions get declined.
  
  
• Search your course name with "free", "telegram", "drive" and "pdf" every week.
  
  
• Your name as requester can appear on Lumen; use a representative if that matters.
  
  
• Report Drive files and Telegram channels separately, because delisting alone leaves them live.
  
  

This is general information, not legal advice. For your situation, speak to a lawyer.

Frequently asked questions

What is DMCA takedown request?

It is a notice asking an online service to remove or disable access to material that infringes copyright, following the process set out in the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act. It identifies the copyrighted work and the infringing material, gives contact details, includes a good faith statement and a statement of accuracy made under penalty of perjury, and is signed. Google, YouTube and many other platforms use this format worldwide.

What is DMCA report?

"DMCA report" is the everyday name for a copyright complaint filed through a platform's DMCA process. On Google, it means the copyright removal form in the Report Content tool. The phrase is also used for platforms' public records of the notices they receive; Google's Transparency Report, for example, publishes copyright removal data by website and by copyright owner.

How to remove website from Google search results?

If a site infringes your copyright, list its infringing pages in Google's copyright removal form; Google delists the URLs you identify, not the whole domain. For a site built on piracy, many valid notices can lead Google to demote it, and an Indian court order naming specific pages can be submitted to Google. Removing pages from your own site is a separate process, done through Search Console.