Google search engines not an intermediary under new IT Rules, says co
Google has said a Delhi High Court order from April mis-characterises Google search as a social media intermediary, and has filed an appeal to set aside this part of the ruling.
“Search engines are a reflection of the content and information that is available on the Internet. And while we maintain a consistent policy over removal of objectionable content from search results, the Delhi High Court order has cast certain obligations that would wrongly classify Google search as a social media intermediary,” a Google spokesperson said.
The spokesperson added that the direction also requires proactively identifying and globally disabling access to any content which may be similar to the offending content, that may appear on any other websites/online platforms, or in any other context.
“We’ve filed an appeal against this part of the order and look forward to explaining the steps we take to remove objectionable content from Google search results,” they added.
News agency PTI reported that Google LLC has contended that the newly notified Information Technology rules for social media firms are not applicable to its search engine.
It has urged the Delhi High Court on Wednesday to set aside a single judge order which applied the rules on the company while dealing with an issue related to removal of offending content from the internet.
The case involved a woman’s appeal to remove her photographs, which were uploaded on a pornographic website by some miscreants.
Despite court orders the content could not be removed in entirety from the World Wide Web and “errant parties merrily continued” to re-post and redirect the same to other sites.
The Court had, in its order, placed obligations on Google Search to follow the new IT Rules for social media intermediaries.
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
