Google to Allow the Removal of Images of Minors

On Wednesday, October 27, 2021, Google announced that it would let minors request the removal of their images from the Google’s search feature.  The feature applies to images pertaining to anyone under the age of 18.  The request can be completed by the minor or their guardian.

Google may need additional information to fulfill the request.  If Google is satisfied that the requirements for removal are met, they will take the image down and notify the requesting user of the removal.

One of the stated goals of the program is to allow young people greater control over their digital footprint and where their images can be found online.

Google is being proactive about privacy for minors.  The Children and Teens Online Privacy Protection Act (also known as COPPA 2.0) is in the works but hasn’t been passed into law.  If it were to pass as-is, it would require companies to allow for the erasure of personal information of children or teens.  A child or teen’s image is just one type of personal information that a company may hold about them.

Protecting the privacy rights of minors is currently very popular.  A series of reports about Facebook’s practices shed some light on some of the possible negative effects social media sites can have on minors.  However, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube (which is owned by Google) all operate with similar algorithms or at least algorithms that produce similar effects of delivering more content to users based on their extrapolated interests.

If COPPA 2.0 passes, it will be important to understand what data your company collects and be able to delete it or place safeguards to avoid collecting it in the case of teens and children.  Clarip can provide those two functions and much more.  We also provide other data subject access request compliance, data risk intelligence scanning, and vendor management.  To learn more or for a demo, visit us at www.clarip.com or call us at 1-888-252-5653!