Google is setting the record straight about a court’s demands that Google stop automatically completing its searches in Japan.
Google searches on most browsers and devices automatically suggest search terms that you might be looking for, based on their popularity. Type “mash,” for example, and the search engine will suggest you’re looking for “Mashable” followed by a suggestion for “mashed potatoes.”
Numerous outlets reported that a court in Japan had asked Google to suspend the autocomplete function entirely, after a Japanese man claimed his certain criminal acts appeared as a suggestion next to his name when Googled. The man claims he was fired from one job, and missed out on being hired from others, because of the association.
The court ruled that certain terms must be deleted from searches, Google says — rather than a blanket ban on autocomplete.
A spokesperson from Google tells Mashable the company can’t say what terms will be removed from Google autocomplete searches in Japan, since it is a current legal matter.
Here’s Google’s statement: “A Japanese court issued a provisional order requesting Google to delete specific terms from autocomplete. The judge did not require Google to completely suspend the autocomplete function. Google is currently reviewing the order.
“Autocomplete is a feature of Google search that offers predicted searches to help you more quickly find what you’re looking for. These searches are produced by a number of factors including the popularity of search terms. Google does not determine these terms manually–all of the queries shown in autocomplete have been typed previously by other Google users.”
The Google spokesperson wouldn’t speculate as to whether or not Google autocomplete could be turned-off entirely in Japan.
This is not the only legal battle Google is fighting at home and abroad. The company has been the target of numerous investigations into its privacy practices and how it uses the public’s information.
What do you think about this ruling in Japan? Tell us in the comments.
Image courtesy of iStockphoto, alija
More About: autocomplete, Google, japan
