How to remove your photos from PimEyes

The only way to know is to search. PimEyes is a face-search engine: you upload a photo of a face and it returns other photos of similar faces found on public web pages, with links to those pages. It matches faces, not names, so a page does not have to mention you to appear. How face-search engines find your photos explains the mechanics.

A free search gives you part of the answer. PimEyes' FAQ says that free searches allow you to see that matches exist, but that access to the source links is limited. To see the exact URLs and websites where the images appear, you pay to unlock the full results. So, for free, you can learn whether PimEyes finds photos that look like you. Finding out where they are hosted usually costs money.

Search with more than one photo if you can, for example a frontal shot and one from an angle. PimEyes' own opt-out form recommends more than one photo for the same reason: different face angles give the engine more to match against.

PimEyes' Opt-Out Request Form describes itself as the way to exercise your right to have any and all of your data removed from PimEyes' system. On the page we checked it does not mention a fee, a payment or a PimEyes account. It has three steps.

• A clear photo of your face. PimEyes asks for more than one photo to cover different face angles. You tick a box agreeing that the photo is used for the purpose of blocking any images of you that may appear in search results.
• An anonymised scan of your ID or passport, for identity confirmation. PimEyes' instruction shows every field except the photo and the name blacked out. You confirm the scan is anonymised that way and consent to PimEyes blocking any images of you in its results.
• An email address for the confirmation letter. A further box lets you ask to be notified about the result of your request.

You also confirm that you are over 18 and accept PimEyes' privacy policy and terms. The privacy policy also lists a telephone number among the details needed; the form page we checked asked for an email address. The policy says data uploaded for an opt-out is kept for no more than 96 hours, then permanently removed from PimEyes' system, leaving only a record of the request and the steps taken.

Opting out means giving a face-search engine a photo of your face and part of an identity document. Decide whether that trade is acceptable before you start. If not, you can still contact the hosting websites directly.

This guide describes PimEyes' opt-out page as published on 16 October 2026. PimEyes can change its form, its wording and its process at any time, and this page may lag behind. UltoPulto is pre-launch.

1. 1.Run a free search on PimEyes with a recent, clear photo of yourself and note whether matches exist. If you can, save a dated screenshot of the results page before you opt out.
2. 2.Decide whether to pay to unlock the source URLs. Only the paid results show the exact websites, and those addresses are what you need if you also want to ask the hosting sites to take the photos down.
3. 3.Prepare your photos: at least two, showing different angles, with your face clearly visible.
4. 4.Make an anonymised copy of your ID or passport following PimEyes' instruction: cover every field except your photo and your name.
5. 5.Open the Opt-Out Request Form, upload the photos, tick the consent boxes, upload the anonymised ID and enter your email address.
6. 6.Tick the box asking to be notified of the result, submit, and keep the confirmation email. Write down the date you submitted.
7. 7.Search again later with the same photos to see whether matches still appear. PimEyes does not state a processing time for the opt-out on the pages we checked.

The consent wording on the form sets the scope: you give PimEyes the right to block any images of you that may appear in the search results of pimeyes.com. PimEyes also says the photo you share will not be included in future search results and will not be used for any purpose beyond fulfilling your opt-out request and its ongoing legal obligations.

• It does not take photos down from the websites that host them. The form says PimEyes is not liable for the origin of a photo, nor able to take it down from the website it was posted on; questions about a photo must go to the page where it is placed. That needs a separate request to each site or account owner. PimEyes' FAQ says a takedown request to an external website may take from one week up to one month to show results, and that the outcome depends on the website's administrators.
• It applies only to PimEyes. FaceCheck.ID, Clearview AI and any other engine keep their own index and need their own request. Our page on face-search engines covers the other opt-outs.
• It switches off PimEyes' alerts for your face. The FAQ says the Alerts feature works only if your face is not opted out of the index. You cannot be excluded from the index and also be told by PimEyes about new matches.
• PimEyes states no processing time for the opt-out. The one-week-to-one-month figure is about external websites. The only fixed deadline in its privacy policy is for California residents asking for their data, 45 days from a verifiable consumer request. Nothing similar is stated for the opt-out.

Many people search for "PimEyes CAPTCHA not working". The PimEyes pages we checked on 16 October 2026 do not mention a CAPTCHA step or what to do if one fails, so we cannot tell you what PimEyes recommends. The pages do give you a second route. The privacy policy lists an email address for data requests and a separate address for its DPO, the officer who handles privacy requests, and says you have the right to access, correct or delete your personal data and to object to processing. A written request by email creates a dated record even when the form fails.

Where you live matters. PimEyes' policy says your data is processed in Belize and other countries outside the one you live in, and names a contact company in Dubai for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. If you are in the UK, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) says an organisation has one calendar month to respond to an erasure request and, in certain circumstances, can take up to two more months. If you are unhappy with the response, the ICO says to complain to the organisation first; after that you can complain to the ICO or enforce your rights through the courts. Our pages on UK and EU law explain how biometric data is treated, and Illinois law gives residents a separate route. This is general information, not legal advice.