In a movement being popularly called the ‘right to be forgotten’ more and more individuals as well as companies are demanding that information written about them online is removed. This is primarily impacting search engines, which are being asked to delist or remove different content, though it can also be directed directly at the sites hosting consent.
A recent example of this is when a Japanese court ordered Google to take down negative business reviews written about a medical clinic. The reviews were anonymous, but were written by people who claimed to be former patients.
The doctor who apparently works at the clinic was required to sign an affidavit saying that the reviews were false. This is a fairly small case in the big scheme of things. In the event that Google does not comply they will face a fine of 300,000 Yen (that’s only $2494 by the way). The point is, however, that courts are siding with businesses that are demanding the right to remove information about them.
Google’s spokesman, Taj Medows, said in a comment about the case, “We’re considering our options on this preliminary injunction, based on a defamation claim from a medical clinic in Japan over negative reviews displayed on Google Maps. While we provide tools that allow business owners to respond to reviews, and we take down posts that violate our policies, we believe online reviews are a critical tool for people to give and read direct feedback about businesses.”
Many people believe this is essentially a ‘testing of the waters’ in Japan, and it is expected to expand else ware. Depending on how courts begin to rule on these types of cases, it could have a significant impact on reviews and other online data. Clearly the search engines can’t be expected to fight in court every time someone complains about a negative review. On the other hand, false negative reviews can have a dramatic impact on people’s businesses.
Seeing what happens with this case will be quite interesting for everyone in the marketing industry as well as businesses who may consider demanding the removal of negative reviews.
