Most people are unaware of the information that may be out there about themselves on the internet. But there may be some content that we don't want to be that public. Moreover, some of it does not depend on us, but on the page that hosts that information. Surely you've ever heard of the right to be forgotten. A right recognized by the Spanish Data Protection Agency(AEPD) by which anyone can request the removal of content about themselves from the Internet. However, under certain conditions: could we remove any trace about us? If there is a page that collects my personal data, would it be possible to remove it? Would it be possible to prevent my personal information from being on the Internet? Is this content really removed? Would there be a way to recover it? In today's article, we're going to explain a bit about all of this.
What is the right to be forgotten?
This right affects the content that search engines such as Google, Bing or Yahoo among others can index in their search engines. The aim is to be able to prevent the dissemination of personal information through the internet when it does not comply with the regulations. Because of this, any natural or legal person can request the removal of the link to that content from their indexes. Here you can do it on Google, Bing or Yahoo for example.
This right does not remove the content itself, but it does make it more difficult to access by making it unavailable in search engines. In this way, many streaming platforms such as Netflix, HBO or Disney+ request that, for example, links to websites where you can watch their content online for free be removed. Once the complaint is approved, we could still access the page if we have the link, but we will no longer be able to find it through search engines.
Despite this, there is always the eternal doubt: Has this content really been removed, or is there a way to have it indexed?
Lumen Database: avoiding the right to be forgotten?
As with everything that happens on the Internet, this also has a trick. The content can still be accessed through the Lumen Database(https://www.lumendatabase.org/). This Harvard University research project was founded in 2002. Its goal: to study complaints related to online content. Formerly known as Chilling Effects, it first indexed complaints from the USA, but now it indexes complaints from all over the world. To do so, it has the collaboration of Google, Twitter, YouTube, Wikipedia, Medium, WordPress, Vimeo or the DuckDuckGo search engine among others.
Lumen has a search engine for the complaints it has collected. If we play around with it a bit, we soon realize that it allows many search parameters: keywords, senders, topics, countries, language, etc. Continuing with the example of streaming platforms, you can consult the complaints made so far by the Walt Disney Company(see). It also has an API available for queries after requesting the corresponding API key.
But what's the catch? Well, as part of the claim, the links that have been requested to be removed are also included. And although the links are not directly visible, it is enough to request access by putting an email to which to send a single-use link that remains active for 24 hours to see all the content.
And in this case, the link is still valid(see), and you can access the content download. It should be noted that an email is required to request access, but this request can only be used once per email.
How does Google take advantage of all this?
In itself, large companies can do little against this initiative, regardless of the final use of this information. Even less could a person requesting the removal of their own claimed links on the basis of the right to be forgotten. In the end it is a purely academic research project. The real question is how does Google take advantage of all this?
Well, it's very simple: Google has indexed Lumen's own page. Although it no longer indexes the search results within the page itself, it facilitates access to the page by indexing it. Fortunately, since 2017, Google has been required to stop collecting search links in the Lumen Database, which it used to do. It is paradoxical, but Google has had to be told to remove links to copies of links it has already deleted.
Why is it important to know Lumen?
Information sources like Lumen are important when performing a digital exposure audit as part of a Digital Screening service. It is a resource that someone with bad intentions would use to extract sensitive information from your target. There are those who consider it a way to avoid the right to be forgotten. Therefore, researchers and intelligence analysts turn to databases like this one because they are websites that people do not usually notice because they are little known. Did you know about this project?
