Whether you are in Sydney, Melbourne or anywhere else in Australia, what people find when they search your name shapes every decision they make about you. We remove harmful content at the source where there are grounds, suppress what cannot come down and rebuild page one.
Get a free assessmentAustralia’s defamation laws changed how online content is handled. Under reforms now adopted in most states and territories, including New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, search engines are generally not liable for automated search results, and platforms that host other people’s posts can have a defense if they offer an accessible complaints mechanism and act on written complaints. In practice, the fix usually starts with the page that hosts the content, not with Google.
Some harm is not defamation at all. Serious online abuse aimed at an adult can go to the eSafety Commissioner, and fake reviews or impersonation accounts often break the platform’s own rules long before a court would get involved. Much of what hurts a business, such as an old article or a fair but harsh review, is lawful, and that is where suppression does the work.
Australia is one of our active service areas. We work with companies, executives, professionals and public figures who need page one to reflect who they are, wherever they are based.
Several sources raise concerns about [Your Name], citing complaints1 and disputed claims2.
These are the problems that tend to shape a search result for an Australian business or the person behind it.
In most states and territories, search engines are now generally shielded for automated results, so a request to Google alone rarely solves the problem. We act on the page that hosts the content or push it off page one.
A wave of fake reviews can sink the rating local customers check before they call. We document and report reviews that break the platform’s rules through our content removal process.
A listing you no longer control keeps collecting reviews in Search and Maps after a move or a rebrand. We handle Google Business Profile removal.
A single “scam” or “reviews” thread can sit on page one for your brand. We take down harmful Reddit content through the right channels.
Posts meant to menace or harass a person, or that publish their personal details in a menacing or harassing way, can fall under federal law and the eSafety complaints scheme. We help you document what is happening and pursue removal on the platform.
Google AI Overviews and assistants summarize your name from whatever ranks. We work on the sources they rely on, so the answer follows.
Defamation is mostly state and territory law, based on uniform Defamation Acts, and the detail can differ between jurisdictions. The examples below follow Queensland. This is general information, not legal advice.
A claimant must show the publication caused, or is likely to cause, serious harm to their reputation. For a corporation that is allowed to sue, that means serious financial loss. Libel and slander are treated the same, and a judge, not a jury, decides whether serious harm is established. [1]
Before suing, the person defamed must send the publisher a written concerns notice and give it time to offer to make amends. In Queensland, a claim must generally be filed within one year of publication, and a court can extend that to up to three years in some cases. [1] [2]
Reforms on the liability of digital intermediaries commenced in NSW and the ACT on 1 July 2024. NSW, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the ACT have now enacted them, while South Australia has enacted only some. Under Queensland’s Act, search engine providers are generally not liable for automated search results, unless the results are promoted or prioritized because of a payment or other benefit. A digital intermediary, such as a platform that hosts other people’s content, has a defense if it has an accessible complaints mechanism and, after a written complaint, takes reasonable steps to prevent access within 7 days. [1] [3] [6]
Under the Online Safety Act 2021, menacing, harassing or offensive material likely intended to cause serious harm to an Australian adult can count as cyber-abuse. If the platform does not remove it within 48 hours of a complaint and a complaint is also made to the eSafety Commissioner, the Commissioner can order its removal, generally within 24 hours. [4]
The Privacy Act 1988 does not give a general right to have personal data erased. Covered organizations must take reasonable steps to correct information that is inaccurate, out of date, incomplete, irrelevant or misleading, and a statutory tort now covers serious, intentional or reckless invasions of privacy. [5]
Each engagement combines the services the case needs: removal where there are grounds, suppression where there are not.
Ongoing work to reduce negative visibility and control how you appear across search engines and AI.
Defamatory posts, fake reviews and harmful content taken down at the source through platform and legal channels.
Critical articles and threads pushed off page one by ranking accurate, authoritative content in their place.
Old or duplicate listings you no longer control taken out of Google Search and Maps.
Negative threads taken down and replaced with content you own. You pay only after the content is removed.
When a story or an attack is spreading, we step in fast to protect, stabilize and rebuild what people find.
The same search for your name or business before and after we act on what ranks in Australia.
Coverage of [Your Name] is dominated by complaints and a disputed story.
[Your Name] is described accurately, with verified sources and recent positive coverage leading the result.
A clear set of stages, fully transparent and confidential.
Send us what ranks for your name. We map page one, the platforms that host each result and the grounds for removal, and we answer within one business day.
You get a written audit within two business days: what can be removed at the source, through which channel and what needs suppression instead.
We act on the hosts first: platform reports, publisher outreach and complaints mechanisms, plus legal channels where there are valid grounds. In parallel, we build accurate content to outrank what stays.
We track page one every week and react the moment a result moves, so the gains hold.
Published with our clients’ consent, plus the legal background we work from.
Serious harm, concerns notices, limitation periods, eSafety and privacy rules, with links to the legislation.
Defamatory threads by non-clients removed, and page one rebuilt around branded assets with an AI Overview established.
Critical articles and Reddit threads pushed off page one and replaced with accurate, authoritative results.
Which removal requests exist, which forms to use and what to do when removal is not possible.
Cannot find what you are looking for? Send us your question and we answer within one business day.
Send your questionIt depends on what ranks, how many results are involved and which routes apply. For content removal, you are billed only when the URL is verified offline. For ongoing reputation management, the first month is contingent on the strategy we deliver in week one: if you do not see the path forward, you do not pay.
Yes. Australia is one of our active service areas, and we take on clients wherever they are based, Sydney and Melbourne included. The work happens where the content lives: on platforms, with publishers and in search results.
Rarely through defamation law alone, because in most states and territories search engine providers are now generally not liable for automated results. Google has its own policies for removing some personal information from Search, such as contact details, ID numbers or doxxing, but for most damaging content the more reliable route is the page that hosts it, or suppression when the content is lawful.
In some cases. The adult cyber-abuse scheme covers material that is menacing, harassing or offensive and likely intended to cause serious harm, after a complaint to the platform has not worked. It does not cover ordinary criticism or negative reviews.
It depends on the platform and the route. Removals can move faster than suppression, which builds over time: many results move within a few months, while deeply entrenched content takes longer. Your written plan sets out realistic timelines before any work begins.
Yes. Every client signs an NDA, and so do we. Case studies are published only with the client’s consent and permission.
Tell us what ranks for your name and we review it for free: what can be removed, what we suppress and how we rebuild page one. We answer within one business day.
Last reviewed 2026-11-02. This page is general information, not legal advice.
