Google makes some search results findable again after criticism

Google has made a number of deleted search results in its search engine accessible again. The search results were initially removed due to privacy concerns, but came back online after criticism from British media.

A Google spokesperson confirmed to the BBC that it has reinstated a number of links in its search engine after previously removing them. According to Google, the decision to remove a search result is a difficult process, but no further details were disclosed about which articles were made discoverable again.

According to BBC sources, at least the six deleted articles from The Guardian can be found again. BBC articles previously made untraceable via Google have not yet reappeared in the search engine. The Guardian previously suggested that Google is on purpose easy to grant requests to remove search results, in order to spark discussion about European legislation.

The European Court recently ruled that search engines must remove search results if they violate people’s privacy. Google has now put a form online with which people can exercise their right to be ‘forgotten’. The internet giant has already started removing search results. British media complained about censorship after a number of links to articles were no longer available via the search engine. So it seems that Google has heeded the complaints.