How to Remove Youtube Videos Posted by Someone Else

Remove Youtube Videos

Is there a negative, embarrassing, or defamatory YouTube video about you?

YouTube is one of the most popular websites in the world. Acquired by Google in 2006, YouTube allows anyone with an Internet connection a global platform to publish video content. Billions of global users visit YouTube to publish and consume video content. YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world, and it reaches more viewers than any cable network in the United States. Some studies report that 300 hours of video content is uploaded to YouTube every minute.

Manually monitoring and controlling this amount of content is not reasonable, and US Federal Law does not require YouTube to police User Generated Content (UGC). Because monitoring video content on YouTube is not feasible, YouTube videos occasionally contain embarrassing, negative, or defamatory content about individuals and businesses (or their products/services). Thankfully, there are several strategies to remove negative or embarrassing videos from YouTube and Google search results.

WHY YouTube videos REVIEWS RANK HIGHLY ON GOOGLE:

It takes years for you to build a rock-solid reputation and only days for one embarrassing or negative video on YouTube to bring it all tumbling down. If there is a video on YouTube that contains your name, or company name, there is a high probability that the video will rank highly on the first page of Google search results for your name. You may be wondering why this is happening, especially if the YouTube link (that hosts the negative YouTube video) is ranking above other web properties that have existed for years. There are 3 main reasons why this occurs:

1. Engagement: The #1 search ranking factor in 2024 for YouTube videos is engagement. Generally speaking, the more views, clicks, likes, etc. a YouTube video gets, the more prominent it will become in Google search results.

2. Domain Authority: Every site on the Internet has a certain level of “trust” or “domain authority” on Google. The higher a site’s domain authority, the higher the site ranks in search results. YouTube is one of the most powerful sites on the Internet, which is one of the reasons why YouTube videos oftentimes surface to the top of search results. Furthermore, Google has shifted to prioritizing video content in search results, which further enhances the damage of negative or embarrassing YouTube videos.

3. Lack of video content: If you have not published any YouTube videos associated with your name or business, it makes it much easier for videos uploaded by others to make their way to the top of Google search results for your name.

How To Remove A YouTube Video Uploaded by someone else:

Unfortunately, people often times use YouTube’s platform to cause severe repetitional damage to an individual or business. After all, it is just as easy to upload a damaging video as it is to publish something harmless and fun.

Below is a list of various strategies and tactics we have implemented for our clients over the past 6+ years to completely remove embarrassing, negative, or defamatory videos from YouTube or minimize their visibility in Google search results. It’s important to note that you typically only have one shot at getting a YouTube video removed – if you are looking for professional assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact us for a free consultation.

1. Contact the Uploader:

It is possible that whoever uploaded the video does not understand its impact and has not considered the consequences. Before getting YouTube involved, a good first step is to contact the poster and ask him or her to remove it. It is important, if pursuing this route, to be cordial and not exacerbate the situation when contacting the uploader. Rude dialogue or demands may make matters worse and provoke the channel owner to post even more harmful content. If the uploader refuses to comply with your requests or escalates the issue with more videos, then it is time to try other measures.

2. Submit A YouTube Takedown Request:

Remove YouTube Video Content Violation

The majority of removal requests YouTube sees are related to infringement of intellectual property, copyrights, and trademarks. YouTube is often cooperative with these types of takedown requests as they do not want to be involved in the violation of copyright laws. It’s common for YouTube’s legal department and administrators to honor these removal requests, and remove content based on copyright violations.

Because copyright issues are not uncommon, YouTube offers a Reporting Tool where users can submit copyright infringement notices. Users may also request that a YouTube video be removed directly from the YouTube page where it is published. If you believe your copyrighted material, trademarks or intellectual property have been violated by a YouTube video, click the “… More” icon under the video and select “Report.” From there, you can select “Infringes my rights,” then select “Infringes my copyright” from the drop-down menu. Click “Submit” from there, and you will be taken to the Reporting Center to complete the process.

YouTube takedown requests and “flags” are not limited to copyright and trademark infringements. In fact, YouTube has very well documented Community Guidelines to establish a standard for what users may and may not publish. It may be possible to remove any YouTube video that violates the community guidelines by clicking “More” (screenshot below), then “Report” and selecting the most relevant reason.

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3. YouTube Defamation Removal Requests:

While YouTube has a Defamation Complaint Page that is accessible through their removal tool, they are usually not obligated to remove content. YouTube recommends reaching out directly to the user who uploaded the content as a primary strategy but allows defamation submissions nonetheless.

While YouTube may be hesitant to remove videos based on an online form submission claiming defamation, they are owned by a large company and will likely take legal requests seriously. If your submission to the Defamation Complaint page is fruitless, an official request for removal sent by your lawyer may not be.

An attorney who specializes in this will likely have two primary options to remedy defamatory content on YouTube. The first is: send a letter to YouTube’s legal department. The letter should come directly from your legal counsel and should specify which video violates the law and should enumerate exactly how it does so. YouTube’s legal department can be reached at:

YouTube, Inc.
Attn Legal Support
901 Cherry Ave.
Second Floor
San Bruno, CA 94066

Should this method prove unsuccessful, more drastic measures can be taken. Your lawyer can pursue legal action directly against the content creator. It may be possible to subpoena YouTube (or Google) for information about whoever published the content. It also may be possible to attain a court order for removal, depending on your situation.

4. SEARCH ENGINE SUPPRESSION:

The reality is, most videos on YouTube are not eligible for removal, leaving you in a position where you must look for an alternative solution. If a negative video is ranking on the first page of Google for your name, the best strategy to repair the damage caused by the YouTube video is to suppress/supplant it – so the video is no longer visible in search results.

The technical term for this process is “search engine suppression,” which involves creating a network of new positive/neutral videos to replace the unwanted video. The timeframe to remove a YouTube video from the first page of Google varies greatly and depends on several factors. In most cases, suppression is not only effective at removing the video from search results, but it also works to protect your reputation from any future negative videos that may be posted on YouTube.

HOW WE CAN HELP YOU:

If a negative, false, or defamatory video on YouTube is harming your reputation  our team of reputation specialists can help. We have helped hundreds of individuals and businesses remove videos from YouTube.

Reputation Resolutions is one of the few online reputation management firms in the industry offering a pay for performance solution to remove YouTube reviews. What does this mean? If you decide to work with our company, you will only be charged for our services if we are successful in completely removing the embarrassing or negative YouTube video. Reputation Resolutions’ approach to YouTube videos involves in-depth knowledge of YouTube’s terms and conditions, policies, and community guidelines.

WHY YOU SHOULD WORK WITH US:

Reputation Resolutions is one of the few reputation management firms that have an “A+” rating with the Better Business Bureau. In addition, Reputation Resolutions has been selected as one of the top 5 providers of online reputation management services in the industry by three independent rating agencies. To see reviews from past clients who have used our services, click here.

Benefits of working with the Reputation Resolutions Team:

  • Work with a trusted and award-winning online reputation management company
  • This is strictly a pay for performance service – if the YouTube Video is not removed, you DON’T pay
  • Expedited link removal from search engine results after the review is removed
  • Secure payment through Bank of America Merchant Services Account

 

GET STARTED:

To learn more about how Reputation Resolutions can help you remove negative, embarrassing, or defamatory YouTube videos, fill out the form below or call us today at (855)-239-5322 for a FREE consultation.

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