Justin Kahn
Posts: 752 +6
Google has been the target of EU lawmakers as of late regarding privacy issues and policy changes. Recently the highest court in the European Commission ruled that Google must accommodate requests from the public who want certain information online not to appear in Google search results. While to some, including Google, this sounds like censorship, the court ruled that Europeans have the right to be forgotten.
Recently, a German regulator told The Wall Street Journal that Google promised to have a system in place within two weeks for concerned individuals to get search results altered. Google's new personal takedown system will work similarly to the way it handles copyright infringement requests, according to German regulators, which will consist of both automated and manual review.
"This is logistically complicated-not least because of the many languages involved and the need for careful review. As soon as we have thought through exactly how this will work, which may take several weeks, we will let our users know,” said a Google spokesperson. German officials are convinced that Google has similar systems already set up in Europe and that the company should be able to put the new system in place in a timely manner.
While normally German privacy officials receive about 100 requests of this nature per year, they received 8 just one day after the court ruling, suggesting Google's new complaint department could have a busy summer ahead of them.
