Really sorry this has happened to you OP. It is just horrible to have a black mark against your name like that.
DH has a similar issue. He was arrested in his late teens for a strict liability offence. Although the police accepted that he had no idea he was committing the offence, that no one was harmed and there was no possibility that anyone would be harmed and that he would never have intentionally broken the law the CPS were obliged to charge him as it’s strict liability and he received a caution. DH was loosely involved in politics at the time and so several national newspapers printed the story.
This happened over a decade ago now so the caution is spent and he no longer has a criminal record, the caution is wiped and wouldn’t even come up on an enhanced DBS check. However, because of the newspaper stories the information is still out there and, as employers routinely google applicants, comes up every time he applies for a job. He has lost at least one job offer because of it and who knows whether he didn’t get to interviews elsewhere because of it. It is very upsetting as it was one of the scariest things that has ever happened to him and he feels like he can’t get away from it.
We tried the right to be forgotten process years ago but because of the political connection google decided that it was in the public interest for the stories to remain up. We could possibly try again now it’s been so long.
However, he now has a great job, we are a happy family and I think his life is going pretty well!
If I were you I’d try the right to be forgotten process, hopefully as you were actually acquitted you’ll have better luck, but if that doesn’t work, don’t despair - DH has declared the issue to all of his employees and with one exception they have hired him nonetheless (in a regulated profession where you have to be a fit and proper person). Speaking directly to the person who you’ll be working for (not HR) and explaining the circumstances so they feel you’ve been up front with them rather than letting them find out about it on their own goes a long way and gives you an opportunity to explain what happened.
It is incredibly unfair that we have laws like the rehabilitation of offenders act to ensure that people don’t have these things hovering over them forever but things on the internet can still blight your life. However, the more time passes the lower down the google search results your story will fall until someone really has to dig to find it. Plus, while it hurts at the time, you don’t want to work for someone who doesn’t want you based on something you didn’t even do - the ones that reject you based on that are employers you probably don’t work to be tied to.