How to Opt Out of ArrestFacts (2026 Step-by-Step Guide)

ArrestFacts is a specialized data broker that focuses exclusively on arrest records and criminal history data. Unlike general people-search sites that include arrest records as one of many data types, ArrestFacts builds its entire product around arrest information — including arrests that were never prosecuted, charges that were dismissed, cases that resulted in acquittal, and records that were supposed to be expunged. This narrow focus makes ArrestFacts one of the most damaging data brokers for people who have any past interaction with the criminal justice system.

Why Arrest-Record-Specific Sites Are Particularly Harmful

General people-search sites like Spokeo or BeenVerified show arrest records as a small section within a larger profile. ArrestFacts is different: it is a site that people specifically visit to look up criminal history. This means:

Intent-specific visitors: People searching ArrestFacts are specifically looking for criminal record information. A landlord checking for red flags, an employer doing informal screening, a family member or new romantic partner checking someone's background — these searches are purpose-driven in a way that general people-search lookups often are not.

Dismissed and acquitted records visible: ArrestFacts often displays arrests that resulted in no conviction — dismissed charges, acquittals, charges reduced to non-criminal violations. These records can be as damaging to reputation as convictions, despite representing no finding of guilt.

Expungement compliance gaps: State expungement orders direct courts and law enforcement agencies to seal records. They do not automatically require private data brokers to comply. ArrestFacts may continue displaying a record that has been legally expunged from court databases because the original arrest data was captured before the expungement and continues to exist in data broker databases.

Mugshot association: Arrest records are frequently paired with booking photos (mugshots), which are public records in most states. ArrestFacts may display both the record and the associated photo.

What ArrestFacts Shows About You

An ArrestFacts record typically includes:

• Full name as it appeared at booking
• Date of birth
• Booking date
• Arrest charge(s) — statutory citation and description
• Disposition — outcome of the case (if captured in data)
• County and state of arrest
• Booking photo (mugshot) in many cases
• Physical description from booking records

ArrestFacts does not show contact information (addresses, phone numbers) in the way general people-search sites do — its records are arrest-focused. However, because ArrestFacts pages are indexed by Google, a search for someone's name plus state can surface an ArrestFacts page as a top result, even if the arrest was years ago or resulted in no conviction.

How to Opt Out of ArrestFacts: Step-by-Step

ArrestFacts accepts removal requests through their opt-out form. Unlike mugshot removal sites that have historically charged fees for removal (a practice that is legally questionable and heavily criticized), ArrestFacts does not charge for opt-out processing.

Step 1: Search for your record on ArrestFacts

Go to arrestfacts.com and search for your name. Note the URL of any records corresponding to you.

Step 2: Navigate to the opt-out page

Look for the "Remove My Record" link in the site navigation or footer. The direct opt-out URL may be at arrestfacts.com/remove or accessible from the profile page itself.

Step 3: Complete the removal form

Enter your full name, date of birth, the URL of the record you want removed, and your email address.

Step 4: Verify via email

Click the verification link in the confirmation email from ArrestFacts.

Step 5: Monitor for removal

ArrestFacts typically processes removal requests in 3–7 business days. After 7 business days, search for your name to confirm the record is no longer visible.

If the online form does not work:

Email removals@arrestfacts.com or info@arrestfacts.com with:

• Your full name as it appears in the record
• Date of birth
• The URL of the specific record
• Your request for removal under applicable privacy law

What About the Mugshot in the Record?

If the ArrestFacts record includes a mugshot, removing the profile removes the record and the associated image from ArrestFacts' public search. However:

• The original booking photo remains in the custody of the arresting agency and is a public record in most states
• The same mugshot may appear on other sites (Mugshots.com, BustedMugshots, JustMugshots, etc.) that require separate removal requests
• Google may retain a cached thumbnail of the image for 30–60 days after the page is removed

Mugshot removal is a legitimate privacy need and the CCPA explicitly prohibits mugshot sites from charging for removal under California law (AB 1027, effective 2015). If you encounter a mugshot site demanding payment for removal, that practice may be illegal in California.

ArrestFacts, Expungement, and Legal Remedies

The relationship between expungement orders and private data broker records is legally unsettled in most states. Here is the practical framework:

Expungement seals court records and law enforcement databases. Once a record is expunged, the court and law enforcement agencies must seal or destroy the record. The person can legally answer "no" to questions about the arrest.

Most states do not currently require private data brokers to delete expunged records. California, Delaware, and a handful of other states have laws that extend expungement obligations to commercial data brokers for some record types. Most states have no such requirement.

Voluntary compliance varies by broker. ArrestFacts and similar sites generally comply with removal requests for expunged records when provided with documentation of the expungement order. Submit a copy of the expungement order along with your opt-out request for faster processing.

ArrestFacts vs. Other Arrest-Record Sites

Mugshots.com and similar fee-charging removal sites have been the subject of FTC investigations and state AG actions. Do not pay for removal from these sites — free removal options exist, and fee-based removal may be illegal in your state.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does an expungement automatically remove me from ArrestFacts?

No. Expungement orders apply to government agencies (courts, law enforcement). Private data brokers like ArrestFacts are not automatically covered unless your state has a law extending expungement obligations to commercial databases. Submit an opt-out request with your expungement documentation for voluntary compliance.

Why is my dismissed charge still on ArrestFacts?

Arrest records and dismissal records are both public court documents. ArrestFacts may show the arrest record without the dismissal (because the dismissal record was not captured) or may show both. The opt-out process removes the entire record, including both the arrest and any associated disposition data.

Can ArrestFacts legally show my arrest record?

In most states, yes. Arrest records are public documents, and data brokers are legally permitted to publish them. The legal debate is not about publication of original arrests but about whether dismissed, acquitted, and expunged records should be treated the same way. Several states are considering or have passed laws restricting the republication of certain arrest record types.

What if ArrestFacts is using my record for a background check service?

Under FCRA, arrest record information used for employment, housing, or credit decisions must come from FCRA-compliant background check services. Using ArrestFacts data for these regulated purposes violates FCRA. If an employer or landlord tells you they found something on ArrestFacts, consult a consumer protection attorney.

How do I find all the sites showing my arrest record?

Google your name plus state plus variations of "arrested," "charged," or "criminal record." Also search Google Images for your name — mugshot photos are frequently indexed by Google and can reveal sites you have not found through text searches.

ArrestFacts Data Sources: How Arrest Records Spread Online

Understanding where ArrestFacts gets its data explains why opt-outs must be paired with action at multiple levels and why arrest records can reappear after removal.

Primary data sources for arrest record aggregators:

County jail booking records: When a person is arrested, the arresting agency creates a booking record — name, date of birth, charges, booking photo, physical description. Many county jails release booking records to the public daily or in real time through their websites or RSS feeds. Data aggregators systematically monitor these feeds, capturing arrest data within hours of booking. This is why arrest records sometimes appear on sites like ArrestFacts within 24 hours of an arrest, before the case has even reached the courthouse.

State criminal history repositories: Most states maintain a centralized criminal history repository that aggregates arrest and conviction data from law enforcement agencies statewide. Access policies vary significantly. Some states provide bulk data licenses to commercial entities; others restrict access to law enforcement and authorized screening companies. Where bulk licenses are available, data brokers pay for periodic data refreshes that update their databases with new arrest records.

Court data resellers: Companies like LexisNexis, TransUnion (TLO), and Thomson Reuters (CLEAR) aggregate court data from hundreds of jurisdictions and license it to downstream users. Data broker sites may source their court-linked arrest and disposition data from these resellers rather than directly from courts.

PACER and state online case portals: Federal and state court case management systems that provide online public access are indexed by court data aggregators. When an arrest leads to criminal charges that are filed in court, the case appears in these portals with party names, charge descriptions, and case status — all indexable.

Mugshot collection services: There is a secondary market specifically for booking photo data. Some companies collect booking photos from county jail feeds and license them to mugshot sites and arrest record aggregators. ArrestFacts may source mugshot imagery from these specialized collection services rather than directly from county jails.

Why this matters for removal strategy:

Because arrest data enters the ecosystem through multiple independent channels — jail feeds, state repositories, court data resellers, PACER — removing your record from ArrestFacts does not prevent the same data from reappearing when ArrestFacts performs a periodic database refresh from its source feeds. This is especially true if new activity occurs in the underlying case: a new hearing date, a deferred prosecution agreement, a probation check-in that generates a court record entry.

For people with resolved cases, the reappearance rate decreases over time as the source systems age out the record. For people with active cases or recent resolutions, manual re-submission of opt-outs every 60–90 days is necessary.

The Mugshot Industry Business Model and How It Affects Opt-Outs

The mugshot publication industry operates on a business model that is deliberately adversarial to privacy interests, and understanding that model helps explain why some opt-outs work smoothly while others generate friction.

The original mugshot business model (pre-2015):

The original mugshot industry model, dominant in the early 2010s, was pay-to-remove. Sites collected booking photos from public jail records — legally, since booking photos are public records in most states — published them on high-traffic websites optimized to rank well in Google for the subject's name, then charged the subject fees of $200–$500 to remove the photo. Because the same photo was often published on multiple affiliated sites, removal from one did not guarantee removal from all, and payment to one site did not obligate others to remove the photo.

This model generated significant revenue and significant legislative backlash. California passed AB 1027 in 2014, making it illegal for a site to charge for mugshot removal if the site profited from displaying the mugshot in the first place. Other states followed. The fee-for-removal model is now illegal in California and several other states, and legally dubious in most others.

The current mugshot business model:

Modern mugshot and arrest record sites have shifted to advertising-based revenue models. The value proposition is not removal fees but sustained traffic — sites earn advertising revenue as long as people visit to search for records. High-ranking pages for "<name> arrest" queries drive this traffic.

Under this model, the sites have no financial incentive to make removal difficult for individuals. Free removal is fine from a business perspective as long as new records from jail booking feeds continuously populate the site. The site's value is not the individual records but the aggregate database and search traffic.

This shift is why ArrestFacts and similar sites now offer free opt-outs. The business does not depend on any specific person's record remaining visible. However, free opt-outs still require navigation through a form process, email verification, and waiting periods — friction that reduces the rate at which subjects actually complete removal.

Sites that still charge for removal:

Some sites continue to operate pay-to-remove models in jurisdictions without explicit prohibition. JustMugshots and some smaller regional sites have been investigated by state attorneys general for this practice. The FTC has taken enforcement action against the most egregious operators.

If you encounter a site charging for removal, check your state's law before paying. In California, charging for mugshot removal is illegal. Paying may not even guarantee removal, and may mark you as a willing payer for follow-up solicitation. Instead, report the site to your state AG and the FTC, and use CCPA or applicable state privacy law to demand free removal.

The Google de-indexing lever:

Even after a mugshot site complies with a removal request, the Google-indexed version of the page may persist for 30–90 days. For arrest records that rank highly for your name, submit the removed page URL to Google's URL Removal tool immediately after confirmed removal. This manually signals Google to drop the cached page and can accelerate de-indexing to 3–10 days rather than 90.

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Related Guides

• How to Remove Arrest Records and Mugshots from the Internet
• How to Opt Out of PublicRecordsNow
• How to Opt Out of CourtRecords.us
• What Shows Up on a Background Check?
• Complete Data Broker Opt-Out Guide