Google Has Received Over 41,000 Requests To "Forget" Personal Information

itwbennett (1594911) writes 'In the three weeks since a key ruling by the European Court of Justice about the so-called right to be forgotten, Google has already received around 41,000 requests to delete links to personal information from its search results (within 24 hours of putting the form online, Google had reportedly received 12,000 deletion requests). It should be noted, though, that there is no absolute right to have information deleted, and Google will have to weigh a number of criteria in responding to the requests to delete links, including relevance of the information, and the time passed since the facts related.'

Do No Evil so why not delete the info?

[Gothmolly]

If Google is all about doing no evil and playing nice, why wouldn't they delete the information?

Re:Do No Evil so why not delete the info?

[Dahamma]

Is it evil to refuse to delete information about a person's public comments or valid criminal record?

Removing slander is one thing, removing accurate information that is public record could be considered censorship. Which is evil in that case? Or... wow, maybe it's not so black and white...

Re:Do No Evil so why not delete the info?

[Titus Groan]

and the do no evil part of that is called rehabilitation of offenders. Most (if not all) EU countries have laws that state you do not need to inform anyone of a past crime after a certain amount of time - this means that they should not affect your employment prospects. There are obvious exceptions to this for sexual offences against the vulnerable. We like to think that once you serve your sentence your debt is paid.

The most amusing thing about this law...

[Rick in China]

is how the "Right to be Forgotten" started. "Google v González" - Ok, so, this dude petitions to have his name struck from all internet search records because when his name is searched, it turns up records of a previous debt issue where he owed money, and as a result, the government forced sale of his property. He wanted to be removed from the search! What's the result? Precedent set, law passed, and now this fool is known notoriously as the guy who owed money and had forced property sale and whined about it to try to hide history all the way to the supreme court. All of this information is, of course, fully searchable. Good job González.