In May, 2014, the European Court of Justice turned the “Right to Be Forgotten” into law throughout all of Europe — literally anywhere within the EU’s borders. For those who are unfamiliar, we should explain what exactly it is and how it works. This ruling states that any information that is deemed harmful to an individual’s reputation on google or any other search engine can be removed provided the information is “outdated, irrelevant, or no longer relevant”; and, perhaps equally importantly, assuming that there is no major “need to know” in a particular regard about the data for the public. No matter what you think of the new law in Europe, the reality is, one way or another, this makes dealing with Online Reputation Management easier over there than it is here in the United States.

This article from ico.org.uk (the British Information Commissioner’s Office) explains how the removal process works in England. It goes over in simple language what information can be removed, how to apply, what action to take if you feel the judgment is unfair, etc. The “Right to Be Forgotten” should be taken very seriously by all those who care about or are interested in ORM, as some reports say, the new idea (which is now law in Europe) could spill into other countries like Canada or perhaps the US. Don’t just take our word for it, just check out this other article on the subject here. This is an evolving issue to be sure. Check back regularly for updates on it.