Today, Google is 16 years old. Facebook is 10 years old, and Youtube is 9 years old. In the fast-moving world of the Internet, which has only been around in a useful form for approximately 20 years, these sites have become institutions. In fact, many of us have had accounts on these sites since we were fairly young, still in elementary and middle school. We were the first generation to grow up with easy and almost ubiquitous access to the Internet and social media. Of course, when we first approached these new concepts as young people, we made mistakes. We left stupid comments, we had ridiculous exchanges with other people online and we might’ve even held opinions that would make our adult selves cringe.
So as we become aware of how permanent the Internet is, as we become aware of the fact that it is not merely a fad, we have to begin thinking about our rights when it comes to using it. We have to gain the right to be forgotten.
Recently, the European Union instituted new rules guaranteeing the right to be forgotten, including the right to petition search engines to take down content about yourself that you find objectionable, incorrect or irrelevant. Since May 30, search engines have been required to listen to requests from ordinary Europeans to have content removed under the right to be forgotten doctrine. Armed with an army of paralegals to process these requests, Google has taken on the issue in a decisive way.
Imagine that several years ago, you said something objectionable. Maybe you went on a tirade against another person who had irked you, or you said something that reflected on you poorly as a responsible adult. If you had said it face to face, over the phone or mailed it to someone, very little in way of records of that would exist. Only those who managed to remember the misstep, or who kept the letter, might have held a less-than-favorable opinion of you. But if you posted it online? Well, in that case, it’s public record. One misstep from several years ago can paint a terrible picture of you for the rest of the world.
Seeing now that the Internet is not a fad, that it will not disappear in the future, it’s time for us to concern ourselves with our online legacy. In a world without the right to be forgotten, or the right to dictate what is done with your online profiles after you die, your life becomes an open book, up to interpretation and debate. Whether you are a janitor, a bureaucrat or a celebrity, your life will be a matter of public discussion.
However, if you are allowed to delete these profiles when you die, if you’re allowed the freedom to be forgotten and we recognize the limits of this technology in the interest of privacy, not much will change, and those who live their life out of the public spotlight will be afforded the privacy of that position.
Most of us will never be public figures. Most of us won’t release a hit single, run for congress, star in a TV show or write a best-selling novel. The Internet, as it’s structured today, doesn’t seem to protect the benefits of this status. With protection of both journalistic freedom and the right to privacy in mind, the right to be forgotten can revolutionize how we see ourselves in the public sphere and online.