EDRI - Notice & take-down

Ireland: Google ordered to remove Knowledge Graph result

bogdan — Wed, 04 Dec 2013 18:31:49 +0000

On 28 November 2013, Google received an ex-parte interim order from an Irish court to block the publication of a photo image of convicted solicitor Thomas Byrne which appears as a search result alongside the profile of Irish Senator Thomas Byrne, a solicitor himself.

Google considers it cannot be held liable for what comes up in its search results, as it only creates a snapshot of content that is elsewhere on the internet and this so-called “caching defence” is covered by the EU’s e-commerce directive law, allowing ISPs to not be held liable for being a mere conduit for information.

However, Google is no longer a mere provider of search results reflecting the content of websites elsewhere on the internet as it currently offers a range of products and services that brin

ECtHR: Internet news portal liable for the offensive online comments

bogdan — Wed, 23 Oct 2013 17:56:37 +0000

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) ruled on 10 October 2013 in the case Delfi AS vs.

Joint letter on Market Surveillance and Product Safety Regulation

bogdan — Wed, 09 Oct 2013 16:31:42 +0000

On 2 October 2013, EDRi signed a joint letter together with other civil society groups and organisations (CCIA, EDIMa, EuroISPA, EEA and EMOTA) asking the competent EU institutions to act on the amendments to the draft Regulations on Market Surveillance and Product Safety that could have far-reaching consequences affecting online commerce and Internet intermediaries freedom.

The letter asks not to extend the scope of the Regulation to cover intellectual property, as that would undermine legal certainty and put an excessive burden on businesses, particularly SMEs.

Also, the text points to a number of amendments that would undermine the principle of technology neutrality and would specifically burden e-commerce by singling out ‘online’ trade and seeking to impose far-reac

ECJ Advocate General: Google shouldn't be forced to block results

bogdan — Wed, 03 Jul 2013 21:32:42 +0000

In a case opposing the Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD) and Google Spain, Niilo Jaaskinen, the Advocate General of the European Court of Justice (ECJ ), issued on 25 June 2013 his opinion that, on the basis of the Data Protection Directive, search engine service providers are, in principle, not responsible of personal data appearing on web pages they process.

AEPD requested Google Spain to remove results regarding an auction notice for a repossessed home, based on a complaint from a person who had claimed that the search results were infringing on his right to privacy and who had asked for the removal of the results.

SIF Unconference: Enforcement through "self-"Regulation - who ever thought this was a good idea?

joe — Mon, 27 May 2013 14:36:38 +0000

Last week, European Digital Rights attended the second annual Stockholm Internet Forum which focused on two main themes: Internet Freedom and Security and Internet Freedom and Development. A novelty this year were the Unconference sessions.

Germany: Google must remove autocomplete harmful searches if notified

bogdan — Wed, 22 May 2013 17:22:56 +0000

On 14 May 2013, the German Federal Court ruled that Google auto-complete feature may, under certain circumstances, constitute an infringement of the personality right, under the German Civil Code and the German Basic Law.

Since April 2009, Google has introduced an "autocomplete" feature integrated into the search engine, which automatically brings forth suggestions, as word combinations, when a user enters a search in a window.

French intelligence wants Wikipedia to delete online content

bogdan — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 19:04:46 +0000

This article is also available in:
Deutsch: Französischer Geheimdienst verlangt Löschung eines Wikipedia-Artikel...

The Wikimedia Foundation was asked on 4 March 2013, by French spy agency Direction Centrale du Renseignement Intérieur (DCRI), to remove its article in French “Station hertzienne militaire de Pierre sur Haute” (the military station of Pierre sur Haute) considered by the agency to contain classified military information the publication of which violated the French Penal Code.

According to a judicial source quoted by AFP, the request for the deletion of the article was due to the fact that

CEO Coalition - the blind leading the bland

joe — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 10:42:08 +0000

After a year of working group meetings, the “CEO Coalition to make the Internet a better place for kids” produces its final documents on 4 February. The outcome of the project is a set of voluntary guidelines divided into five broad headings, ranging from “reporting tools” to “notice and takedown,” It is intended that this will be followed up by a meeting, in about six months, between Commissioner Kroes and the CEOs of the companies responsible. The meeting is designed to put pressure on the CEOs to fully implement the “voluntary” measures.

"Voluntary enforcement" vs legal restrictions - what rules apply?

joe — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 13:41:59 +0000

Sometimes, watching the Commission make up its mind on a controversial topic is like watching a sports match. One of these topics is the question of whether it is legal for governments to encourage internet service providers (ISPs) to restrict fundamental rights “voluntarily” or whether they would need a legal basis. The European Home Affairs Commissioner, Cecilia Malmström is certain... that they do, that they don't and that they might... possibly.

Portuguese blog taken down by Google for unknown reasons

bogdan — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 17:50:44 +0000

This article is also available in:
Deutsch: Google schaltet aus unerklärlichen Gründen portugiesischen Blog ab

On 14 November 2012, the blog of the group Precários Inflexíveis, whose purpose is to expose the working conditions of freelance workers without permanent contracts, was deleted by Google, during the day of the general strike in the country.

Those who tried to find information about the protest and actions of the group, were greeted with the message “This blog is in violation of Blogger's Terms of Service and is open to authors only”.