How do I remove a cached image from Google?  The page has been removed
but the cached image still sits on Google, 3 months after the page was
removed.

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Request for Question Clarification by muhammad-ga on 30 Dec 2003 04:35 PST

Can you tell me whether you have the access to upload any files to the
website the cached image of which you want to remove, then I can
provide further assistance.

Hi beowulf1966-ga,
   Google provides instructions on how you can request removal of your
pages from the Google index, on the following page:
                - Remove Content from Google's Index
                  (://www.google.com/remove.html)

   In your case, I understand that the Google search results contain
links to an old page on your website, which no longer exists. Google
provides the following information for getting these old ("dead")
links removed from its index:

  "Google updates its entire index automatically on a regular basis.
When we crawl the web, we find new pages, discard dead links, and
update links automatically. Links that are outdated now will most
likely "fade out" of our index during our next crawl.
Note: If you believe your request is urgent and cannot wait until the
next time Google crawls your site, use our automatic URL removal
system. We will accept your removal request only if the page no longer
exists on the web."

So, you basically have two choices:
   1. Wait for Google to eventually update it's index, OR
   2. Use the Google automatic URL removal system (link below) to get
the dead link removed. You will have to provide Google with a valid
email address for this. Further instructions will be emailed to you at
the provided email address.
     - Google automatic URL removal system 
       (http://services.google.com/urlconsole/controller)


==========================================================

Hope this helps.
If you need any clarifications, just ask!

Regards,
Theta-ga
:-)




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Google Search Terms Used:
  - none -

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Request for Answer Clarification by beowulf1966-ga on 05 Jan 2004 13:44 PST

hi - thanks - it's not my own site.  It is an image of an article I
wrote.  The page has been deleted from the site but the cached image
has been showing for over four months now.  Any ideas?  When I tried
to contact google through their "URL removal" system, I received a
message telling me the page can't be found - so no hope contacting
google.

I've tried to reach the URL removal system from both your link in the
answer as well as from Google's own web page - both links take me to
an error message.

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Clarification of Answer by theta-ga on 22 Jan 2004 18:05 PST

Hi beowulf1966-ga,
   Sorry for the delay, but I was out of town. 

   I am a bit confused about what you want removed from the Google
index. Is it a cached webpage you want removed from Google Search, or
a cached image from Google Image Search?
   Just to be certain, I am providing the solution for both situations below:
    
     - Remove cached webpage from Google Search.
      The steps for this are outlined in my original answer. There is
no way to have a cached webpage removed without the help of the
webmaster of the involved website. You could try emailing the
webmaster of the site involved, for help.
     
     - Remove cached image from Google Image Search
       Removing a cached image file is possible even without the help
of the site's webmaster, provided that you can assert your copyright
over the image. Detailed instructions for having an image removed from
Google Image Search can be found here:
            - Remove an image from Google's Image Search
              (://www.google.com/remove.html#images) 

====================================

Hope this helps.
If you need any clarifications, just ask!

Regards,
Theta-ga
:-)