Anyone hoping to get Google to remove them from search results following the EU’s “right to be forgotten” ruling could be in for a long wait, the Information Commissioner’s Office says.
With reports claiming Google has been bombarded by UK consumers, the ICO – which will be responsible for resolving complaints when a search firm refuses to remove links – said it will be many months before take-down requests will be dealt with.
Acknowledging the “right to be forgotten” would be difficult to implement, ICO deputy commisssioner David Smith said: “This judgment was only made last week, and the companies will need some time to work out how they’re going to handle this.
“We won’t be ruling on any complaints until the search providers have had a reasonable time to put their systems in place and start considering requests.”
Having initially backed the move, Smith added: “It is important to keep the implications in proportion and recognise that there is no absolute right to have links removed. Our concern remains how this can be achieved in practice and how to set reasonable expectations for the public about how such a right can operate.”
He said the ICO and other data protection authorities would need to issue guidance, and said that the organisation planned to discuss the matter with its European counterparts at the start of next month.
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First Google deletions ‘months off’ claims data regulator http://t.co/d1Go63UuIB #dataprotection #data #digitalmarketing #directmarketing