The Right to be Forgotten

The Right to be Forgotten: The Web has a long memory. Many are chagrined that one misstep will regularly haunt them thanks to Google search results. It’s particularly dismaying as Googling people is a common step for those dating or hiring someone. In Europe, there’s a movement to enshrine a “right to be forgotten.” As much as Americans are like European, we part ways significantly in certain areas. Here, we prize the freedom of speech above all else. Europe has a different history, replete with government spying and intrusion into citizens’ private lives. For that reason, Google is facing regulation that requires it to “forget” some European citizens. It will be interesting to see if this concept of control over personal data has any resonance on this side of the Atlantic. My guess is no. As tempting as the various drives to giving users control over data are, the genie appears out of the bottle in that regard — and far too much money is at stake in the business of making money of people’s personal data.