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EXACTLY A YEAR ago, the European Court of Justice passed a ruling that would pave the way for ‘the right to be forgotten.’
Under certain conditions, an individual could request certain information to be removed if “the data appeared to be inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant.”
What this meant was provided you were successful, Google and other search engines would remove or edit certain search results from terms provided they met these criteria. Since Google is the dominant search engine in Europe, holding between 90% to 96% of the market share, the ruling brought it into the spotlight.
A year on, what does it mean for individuals?
While nothing has changed in the actual ruling, that hasn’t stopped the confusion over who’s responsible for enforcing this and who isn’t. The main points to keep in mind are:
If a request is granted, it only affects the indexing of said information. The information will still be out there, but just harder to find.
What must you do if you want data removed from Google?
You must provide links to the material in question, your home country, a photo ID and an explanation as to why the links should be removed. In this case, Google deals with the requests directly.
Those who wish to make a request must fill out this form.
How many requests were made since the ruling passed?
Since Google dominates search results in Europe, requests have been directed towards them. Since it started accepting requests for removal on 29th May, 253,617 requests have been made across Europe with 920,258 URLs evaluated, according to the most recent update. Of those URLs evaluated, 321,543 or 41.3% were removed.
Many of these were granted at the start and in recent months, it’s believed it has rejected 70% of requests.
For Ireland, more than 2,300 requests were made and 7,364 URLs were evaluated. Only 1,791 URLs or 29% were removed.
The top ten sites which involve the likes of Facebook, YouTube and Google Groups accounted for 8% of all URL evaluated.
What kind of requests have been made so far?
Google has listed a number of accepted and rejected examples on its transparency site. Some examples are:
Since each request is dealt with on a case-by-case basis and the reasoning for each one isn’t revealed, figuring out why certain requests are granted is difficult.
What are the main criticisms?
There have been a few, but the main ones concern freedom of speech and its wider implications.
While the information is still there, the links are only removed for specific search results and the reasoning behind said removals can be unclear.
To give one example, a blog post from the BBC, published back in 2007, was removed shortly after requests were accepted.
While it was initially assumed the request came from the individual named, it’s believed the request was likely made by a commenter, which brings up its own set of problems.
Also, Google has criticised the fact it has to be the judge, saying it doesn’t necessarily have enough information to make a decision.
Some of those making the requests give false or misleading information, and in certain cases, that’s usually all the info it has to work with. As a result, it has been criticised for some of its decisions (with some links being reinstated), but it has insisted it’s just following the ruling.
The other problem is whether such a ruling would have wider implications beyond Europe. For some US (and EU) commentators, not only does it threaten freedom of speech and may have negative effects on privacy and censorship, they believes Europe shouldn’t be creating a precedent that one region could set global rules for the internet.
While links were removed from certain search results, the pages could still be found through using other terms or through Google.com, a concern for the European privacy watchdogs.
Back in February, Europe’s privacy watchdogs rejected the conclusions reached by an independent group advising it on how best to apply last year’s ruling. The group said Google could continue its policy of removing sensitive links from the European versions of Google’s sites.
However, European regulators believe that this approach undermines the entire purpose of the ruling by not applying it globally, and not doing this was disobeying the law.
“We’re not going to change our mind” Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin, the chair of the French data protection agency CNIL told the Financial Times at the time. “At some point, if they don’t agree to what we have asked them to do… they will have to face a judicial question.”
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I want to laugh I really do..but its tragic. We’ve clowns absolute clowns running the country
the names tell it all need i say any more people
It’s a fcukin joke of a government.
Arthur Cox.
The guy that represents Ulster Banks Repo department and a guy who owes IBRC a lot of money (amongst other things)
http://namawinelake.wordpress.com/2013/03/11/arthur-cox-and-the-ibrc-liquidation/
Sorry to ask an obvious question but
is there not a slight conflict of interest here Mr Noonan???
Are you just giving the over indebted villains of the boom and their “advisers” discreet bailouts with these 100 million Euro contracts???
What no mention of KPMG?
Irish Nationwide’s auditors?
Aka IBRC’s/Irish Naitionwide’s “Special” Liquidator????
KPMG aka that “upstanding” big 4 accountancy firm of “experts” that gave Irish Nationwide a clean bill of health when it was in truth bust????
KPMG that “fine team of professionals” that go around the country terrorising small taxpaying business owners,
as KPMG have now got huge contracts from our government that has them now acting as receivers for our bust banks.
More jobs for your inept greedy boys, Noonan???
If Bernie Madoff lived in Ireland he’d be Taoiseach.
That Sh1t colored gravy train goes on!!
I agree and they had the Gaul to blame The other shower ….. Well one is as bad as the other…. Still the same sh1t and it stinks to the high heavens .
SeanJohn
If you have the Gaul to make such an error I’m not too sure you would understand anything of the substantive matter anyway.
The lunatic rodgers has awoken and back to “attack the poster not the post”.
But they’re not even running the country, they have to hire consultants to do it! What the hell do the Dept of Finance actually do?
The money was recouped from the taxpayer not the banks
You only have to look at that photo to know you’re right!
Why is this clown allowed keep his account active he just churns out pure crap over and over its accounts like this that muddy any polls or forums. Its plain to see can you just kick it to the curb already
Fool me once shame on you, Fool me twice shame on me.
aren’t all these CLOWNS the same people who oversaw the last crash…what a fu##ing joke…….eat up pixieheads your porridge is getting cold….
The Irish people are the f ing clowns that keep sitting on there holes letting this stuff happen
Pete what are you going to do about it
They pay 100 million of our money to bankers to ask them what to do with bankers debt…that’s how much of a joke this world has become.
Hey Noonan
Here is some free advice … They are Crooks hellbent on suiting themselves
But you already know that !
Hes one of them.
More money well spent by our Government..
What a shower of muppets.
They should have just put the €100 million on 16 Red…..
The time for revolution is here. How can any citizen of this benighted country not weep on reading this article? I feel ashamed at the bunch of useless, inept gobdaws we have allowed to sit in authority over us. The reality is any dog on the street could assume leadership of this country given that all important decisions are made by (handsomely) paid consultants. I volunteer for the job.
We need to bring in a few Consultants from the Ukraine, to advise us how to get rid, by peaceful means of a Democratically elected Government not governing Democratically. The interests of the people are being usurped, and abused, in the interest of the few- the same old preferred, and incompetent elite.
Johnny, no truer word was ever spoken. Now, how do we import some actual spine, you know, that thing that makes you willing to take actual, personal, risks to change this shitty situation?
Why don’t you set up a Facebook page, nothing the government fears more :D
Goldman Sachs – perhaps heavily vested interests in paying off all bondholders.
Arthur Cox – perhaps partners and clients up to their eyeballs in property and anglo loans.
I wonder what sort of advice they would have provided? Burn the bondholders? Liquidate the bank and call in all the loans?
Deja vu- it’s nothing new! Same old patronage. The Sinners are still the Winners!
Hey, advice to open something, advice to keep something open and advice to close something and all from the same over paid advisors and costing over €17,000 per day. Some one remind me why we have ministers again please?
What a joke this hell hole of a country really is
Speechless….
The Offences against the State Act is still on the statute books isn’t it?
“encouraging people not to pay their lawful taxes”
Sleepless nights for some Accountants perhaps?
“Undermining the legal authority of the State”
Well now where to begin with that one!
Seems Banksters, Developers and some TDs should examine their conscience… Assuming they had one!
Wouldnt be too bad if the advice was any.f*****g good (the banks went bust!)
Idiot bankers …idiot government looking after their idiot consultants pals & we taxpayers foot the bill. We have keystone cops, a muppet government, a justice system that jails pensioners while they let sex offenders & murders roam free. This country is sad place to live in now
Wakey wakey paddy
They should have spent the money on Arthur Guinness, much better value
An excellent example of government policy: bleed the majority of every spare cent they have in tax hikes, new charges and pay cuts while the elite are fed from the trough. And labour continue to stand idly by, traitors.
Thats what happens when we vote for people who are totally unsuitable for the. How many school teachers are in the Dail? That is the reason they have to hire ” consultants”. Imagine being hired as a carpenter and then having to hire someone to show you you how to hang a door. That is what we do every few years!
I’m in the wrong job!
Joshua
No sir! I would suggest that your in an appropriate type of employment.
How many if these consultants also work for the banks??? Do they have to declare if they do? Often large solicitors firms work for banks and revenue and they don’t declare it. Girds who they share the insider information with??!!!
So we vote a government in, in turn they hire people to do jobs who in turn have to get consultants in to tell them how to do the job.
Hmm wouldn’t it be better to just hire the consultants and skip the middle man?
100 million in over two years, that’s well over 100,000 per day, to tell people that should know what to do anyways how to do it.
Old Boys club!
Here is how ,,,,, not there fuc@ing money
It’s pretty bad that we have this gravy train to companies like these but is there even a tendering process where consultants compete or does the government just pick one and give them a blank cheque.?
All carried out by bankers! Oh, the folly!
100 million is a collosal amount but irish banks have paid the government over 10 billion in roughly the same time frame.
They may as well close the Department of Finance seeing as they can’t give sound financial direction.
I’m still trying to get my head round why we came 21st least corrupt country in the world. 21st most corrupt seems more like it!
How do we as the ultimate payers gauge what outcomes/ value we gain from the government’s spend? Crazy money
Corruption at its best in Ireland and yet nobody knows just what to do about it.
We need a new party in this country kick out shell and take it over so cheaper fuel by 50%
Kinsale oil and gas as well barry roe oil start pumping it plenty of skilled people looking for work
Bring interment back for politicians all party’s who lie for financial gain .
If they protect the chosen few strip them of all assets including business they buy back for nothing from Nama And get family members to buy them for cents .
Amazing plan.
And what advice did they get,
A) you must give more money to banks;
B) you must not give mortgage holders a break;
C) you must pay up front for advice.
In other countries, vomit inducing reports like this would have people on the streets protesting about the stupidity of it all, trying to remind the government that they were elected to serve the citizens, not the corporations.
But not here, here the citizen gets strapped to a table, gets rodgered repeatedly and relentlessly, gets lied to incessantly by being told that it is all for your own good, and accepts it without a murmur.
It’s no wonder the country is fcuked.
All modern day irish politicians are interested in are the three p’s, the power , the perks, and the pension. I have a feeling i will be waiting a long time to be convinced otherwise.
Good advice is expensive
We also give away 620 million euro to foreign aid .money that should be spent on work like the athy kildare housing project . Rebuilding of unfinished estate . 35 families rehoused
All our modern day irish politicians are interested in are the three p’s, the power , the perks, and the pension. They are just a bunch of corrupt conmen who have run this country into the ground, and disgraced it’s good name. I have a feeling i will be waiting a long time to be convinced otherwise.
If I understand the comments correctly, most people would prefer that governments not seek advice on anything, and instead just make everything up as they go along. You may get your wish.
People should stop commenting on things they don’t understand.
Clearly back scratching needs to be done to get us out of this.
It’s being done.
Michael Noonan is a national hero and a patriot.
These handful of millions will pay huge dividends in the future generations.
have your say