by Jason Cohen
Google revealed new tools and safeguards to assist users in managing personal data, privacy and online safety, in an announcement on Thursday.
The updated tools will enable users to remove personal information from Google search results such as “personal phone number, home address or email,” according to a blog post by the tech giant on Thursday. Google will also give users the choice to receive alerts about new search results that include their personal contact data, simplifying the removal process.
“We’ll be rolling out a new dashboard that will let you know if web results with your contact information are showing up on Search,” the blog post states. “Then, you can quickly request the removal of those results from Google — right in the tool. We’ll also notify you when new results from the web containing your contact info pop up in Search, to give you added peace of mind.”
Further, Google will now automatically blur explicit content including adult or violent imagery in search results, according to the post. Users can modify or stop using the safety setting unless authorities such as guardians and school administrators have “locked” it.
Moreover, Google is making it possible for users to remove personal sexual content if they no longer want it in search results. Previously, this only applied to non-consensual content but now they can remove “any of their personal, explicit images that they no longer wish to be visible in Search.”
“For example, if you created and uploaded explicit content to a website, then deleted it, you can request its removal from Search if it’s being published elsewhere without approval.”
Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sued Google and YouTube for allegedly violating his free speech rights on Wednesday. Google is the parent company of YouTube, which has repeatedly censored his speeches and interviews.
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Jason Cohen is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation.
