What to Do if Your Personal Information Appears on Reddit

Published October 30, 20264 min readBy the RedditPostRemove team

You are scrolling and there it is: your name next to your home address, or your phone number in a comment, or your workplace in a thread about you. Your stomach drops. This is often called doxxing, and it is a serious breach of privacy. This guide gives you a calm order of steps, with your safety first.

Step 0: your safety

If the information includes your home address and the post comes with threats, or you feel unsafe, contact your local emergency number or police. Tell someone you trust. Consider whether you need to take temporary steps such as staying with a friend or changing routines. Online cleanup matters, but it comes second to safety.

Step 1: preserve evidence

Content can disappear when the poster realizes it is being reported. Before you act:

• Save the link to the post or comment.
• Take screenshots showing the content, the username, the community and the date.
• Save the profile link of the poster.
• Note anything else that connects the post to harassment, such as earlier threats.

This evidence is useful for Reddit, for the police and for any lawyer you may consult later.

Step 2: report it on Reddit

Use the menu on the post or comment to report it. Reddit's rules protect people from having their personal information shared. Choose the category for sharing personal information, and add a short, factual explanation. For example: "This comment publishes my home address, which I have not made public." Include only what is needed. You do not have to repeat the private details in the report.

Step 3: message the moderators

Moderators can often act within hours, and many communities treat privacy violations as an immediate removal. Use the "message the mods" option, include the link, say what private information is exposed and ask for removal. Keep the message short and civil.

Step 4: secure your own accounts

Information exposure can lead to follow-up attacks. Take a few minutes to:

• Change passwords for key accounts, especially email.
• Turn on two-factor authentication.
• Review privacy settings on social media.
• Check whether your phone number or email is tied to recovery for other accounts.

Step 5: watch for harassment and report it

If the exposure is part of a pattern, document each incident. Block the accounts involved so that they cannot message you, and report any threats or repeated targeting. Our guide on how to report harassment on Reddit covers this.

Step 6: deal with search results

Even after the Reddit post is removed, the information may still appear in search results. Google offers tools that let you request removal of certain personal information, such as contact details, and to refresh outdated results after the original page has changed. Do the Reddit removal first, because the second tool depends on the page having changed.

Step 7: report off-platform

• Threats, stalking or harassment. Report to local law enforcement.
• Identity theft. Report to the Federal Trade Commission and your bank.
• Impersonation. Report to the platform where it happens.

What counts as personal information

Reddit generally treats private details that can identify or locate someone as personal information: home addresses, personal phone numbers, private emails, ID and financial numbers, private photos or documents and similar. Information that is already public and tied to a business, such as a business listing, is treated differently. If you are unsure whether your case qualifies, a review is worth doing.

What not to do

• Do not post your own details to "prove" the claim.
• Do not threaten or insult the poster.
• Do not ask others to mass-report. It can be counted against you.
• Do not pay anyone who promises to remove content in minutes. Be wary of guarantees.

Prevention for the future

• Use separate usernames for different parts of your online life.
• Keep personal details out of posts and comments, even in small communities.
• Review old posts and delete those that reveal too much.
• Set up alerts for your name and address to find new exposures quickly.

Getting help

We can review the content, prepare a clear privacy report, contact moderators and explain your next steps. See our Reddit personal information removal service. We cannot guarantee that Reddit will act or how fast, and we are not a law enforcement agency, but we can help you move fast and avoid common mistakes. For related guidance, read how to request removal of private information from Reddit.

Frequently asked questions