What to do if you have been defamed on the internet

The ability to list web pages on the top page of the search results for a long period of time is normally a result of either excellent workmanship or an unintended, random consequence of Google algorithms. Names of individuals and companies are easy targets for the purpose of defamation on websites or even just to cause someone reputational, emotional or financial harm.

Why defamation on websites appear in the internet search results 

Defamation by mixing true and false information

What is the limitation period for defamation

Adverse results from search engines can often have severe consequences, sometimes affecting you as an individual, sometimes affecting your family and at other times affecting your business. This will seem particularly unfair where the information presented by the search engine against your name or the name of your business is untrue, deceptive or very old.

On 12 October 2014, Google reported to have rejected more than two thirds of all the ‘right to be forgotten’ applications they received from UK applicants. By contrast, Cohen Davis has obtained nearly 92% success rate with its right to be forgotten applications to Google and the ICO.

Google’s decision to comply with any such applications is of course at their discretion (albeit in accordance with the landmark court ruling made in Google Spain SL & Google Inc v Agencia Española de Protección de Datos (AEPD) & Costeja González (“Google Spain”) in May 2014) and there are currently no hard and fast rules which might serve to predict an applicant’s chances of success. Indeed, when comparing some successful applications against those which Google rejected, it becomes quite apparent that (at least on the face of it) even Google does not appear to maintain a consistent approach in how it deals with

An important ruling by the Court of Justice of the EU might mean that you and your children could ‎have a right to have information deleted from the internet.

The ruling came after Mario Costeja Gonzalez, a Spanish man, complained that a search of ‎his name in Google brought up newspaper articles from 16 years ago about a sale of property ‎to recover money he owed.

If you already made an application to Google under the right to be forgotten and your application was declined, you have a right to appeal to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the regulator responsible for data protection in the United Kingdom, which has the power to overturn Google’s decisions.

"For most people the application to the ICO under the right to be forgotten is likely to be the very last opportunity ever to have information removed from Google searches and from the internet."