Fill a form, remove online personal data

A European Court ruling that specifies the fact that people can have links about themselves removed from internet search results when requested has caused tech giants to take action.

Google is the first tech company to introduce an online form regarding the 'right to be forgotten' where people can specify why the link is 'irrelevant, outdated or, otherwise inappropriate.' If approved, the link will be erased although the web page remains.

However, things might not be as easy as they seem, Belgian Pirate Party's Kevin Hauzer explains: 'Firstly, the Internet user may feel tricked because Google asks for a photo ID card to validate the request, which is a problem with regards to privacy rights. Also the user will have to repeat the procedure with other websites and search engines. And finally, Google insists that it won’t be the one ruling on the requests, but It will be the national regulatory bodies.'

28 national data protection agencies across Europe will have a final decision in any links-related disagreements even tough Google decides whether a link stays or goes.

The company reported that, within the first 24 hours from the launch of the 'right to be forgotten' online form, 12,000 requests have been sent to Goggle from across Europe.

Other companies with search engines are making their move only slower than Google. Yahoo, which operates its own search engine in Europe, stated that they are 'carefully reviewing' the EU ruling to see how it could affect their business and users.

Microsoft, on the other hand, refused to make any comments regarding the ruling. The tech giant owns the Bing search engine.