More than ever, the internet encompasses the lives of many people every day. Online activities are dominated by shopping and social networking. In this way, people share some of their information with people they do not even know. As users looked back at their cyber “footprints”, they wanted to remove some that they no longer want or need. After a while, they realized that there were some “online mistakes” that they have committed. At this time, they feel the need to correct those mistakes. They want especially to remove the information that should have been kept private.
Yes, many users wished that they would have been more careful when it came to sharing information. They now need an “eraser tool” to delete that unwanted data in cyberspace. If there was a law that would allow them to do so, they would remove data that is no longer wanted or needed.
The “right to be forgotten” is a new issue that demands attention. Some countries are putting their eyes on creating an enforceable law of this kind. One possibility is giving users the right to demand deletion of any information about them online. For example, it would be the right of criminals, after serving their terms, to demand removal of their criminal histories from an internet website.
Experience shows that there are search results that return websites that have incorrect or outdated information about some people. When a relevant law is passed, the concerned “victim” can then demand that such incorrect or outdated data be removed. Obviously, at present there is no such a law that could completely tackle this issue. This means that there would be a piling up and even an epidemic of inaccurate information on the internet over an indefinite period of time. This is a fact and right now, it is becoming a problem.
Online mistakes could be amplified several times in a social networking scenario. There are cases when inaccurate information is copied and posted or used somewhere else. This adds to the complexity of the situation and makes forgetting even more difficult. There are also policy and technical challenges even in a simple case of online mistakes. On the other hand, there are cases when using another person’s information can be helpful. As long as data is not abused, using another’s data could be interpreted as freedom of expression and not a defiance of law of any kind.
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