Google have recently been forced to create a form that was made available on Friday 6th June 2014, giving European Citizens the right to have any requested information about them removed from the search results of EU specific versions of Google.
Google have already received twelve thousand requests for this form on the first day, with up to twenty requests per minute, and with several thousand requests before the form went up. This is a consequence of a ruling by the European Union Court of Justice, where certain users can ask search engines to remove any data about them that is ‘inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant, or excessive in relation to the purposes for which they were processed’.
The form takes requests from ‘individuals’, who will need a photo ID, and to request that only one name has information about it deleted. The individual would also need to list all of the URLs that they want deleted, and an explanation of why they want them deleted, and an explanation of why the URLs are irrelevant, outdated, or inappropriate. If the request is approved, the URL will be hidden from all people in EU countries, although, you would still be able to see the content if you visit Google.com, or any other non-EU version, even if you are in the UK! The approval of the request depends on how Google measures the public interest in the information requested.
- The ‘your information’ section asks for your name and email address, and the relationship you have to the person if you’re making a request on their behalf.
- The ‘Links associated with your name that you want removed’, the first box is where you add your first URL and then if you want to add more you use the link provided to create a new box each time. The box underneath that asks that you enter each URL and a comment underneath it on why you want it removed, but you only get 1000 characters for all URLs.
- The ‘browse’ button is to upload your photo ID and a description asking you to attach a “legible copy of a document that verifies your identity” and proof of your authorisation if you’re making a request for someone else. The description also says that it doesn’t have to be a government issued ID or a passport, and that the information will be solely to help authenticate the request, and that it will be deleted within a month of closing the renewal request case, except as required by law.
- At the bottom, they make sure that you agree to the information in the request being true, by giving you both a box to tick and signature box, with a date, and a paragraph to make sure that you are aware of what you are signing for, and that by clicking submit, you are representing that the information given is true and accurate, and that you are requesting that the given URLs are removed.