Google removes Wikipedia link to former criminal ‘the Monk’

Search engine complied with a request under the controversial ‘Right to be Forgotten’ rule

Gerry Hutch: his Wikipedia page is still accessible to browsers in Ireland but certain links and information deemed “outdated” or “irrelevant” have been removed from search engine results across the EU.

Google has complied with a request to remove a link to the Wikipedia page of convicted criminal Gerry Hutch (known as The Monk) in its search results, under the controversial Right to be Forgotten ruling.

Wikipedia revealed today that Google has informed the online encyclopaedia that it has delinked 50 articles in its search results, one of which was the main article relating to Mr Hutch, who now runs a limousine service.

While his Wikipedia page is still accessible to browsers in Ireland, certain links and information deemed “outdated” or “irrelevant” are removed from search engine results across the EU.

In May, the European Court of Justice ruled that individuals had the right to request search engines to remove content which features “inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant data”.

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So far, Google has received more than 90,000 requests involving more than 328,000 links.