privacy concerns

[MongoForge]

> The popular search engine Google (www.google.com) has instituted a new
> > feature that allows users to obtain a person's name and address as well
as
> > a detailed map and directions to his or her residence, simply by
entering
> > the person's telephone number into the search engine (e.g. 4051112345).
> > While this feature may have positive law enforcement applications, it
> > could also allow adverse parties to locate the home addresses of
military
> > personnel. Google has made available an option allowing people to
remove
> > their telephone numbers from the database.
> >
> > To remove your telephone number from the database, personnel must enter
> > their full phone number into the search engine. If the number is in the
> > database, a telephone icon will appear next to the first or second entry
> > on the results page. Clicking on this icon will open a page containing
a
> > description of the service and a link to request the number to be
removed
> > from the database.
> >
> > In addition, it does not appear that cell phone numbers are included in
> > the above listing.
> >

[KnifeWife]

That's useful information. But even Google points out that you are only removing your listing from their search engine.

(From the Google Page) Our phone and address listings are gathered by a third party provider, which collects telephone directories and other public records available elsewhere on the web. If you would like to have your telephone number completely unlisted (including from your local phone book), contact your local phone company and request to be both unlisted and unpublished.

There are hundreds of telephone directories on the web. There are even some that will allow you to get a list of everyone on a particular street. Even reverse books like law enforcement uses.

Some but not all, offer a removal service.

[mikec]

Yea, I had to us AT&Ts reverse lookup when I first got internet access in '97 to check our technicians cell phone bills to find if they were spending company cell phone minutes and company time on personnal calls .

I can say though, if your unlisted it won't show. I searched my new number that I've had for a year now and left unlisted and it didn't show but my old number did.