Google Removes Links In Response To Complaint
Marik_Steele
To rule in hell... Join Date: 2002-11-20 Member: 9466Members
To rule in hell... Join Date: 2002-11-20 Member: 9466Members
in Discussions
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Google Removes Links in Response to DMCA Complaint
Posted by CmdrTaco on Sunday August 31, @11:08AM
from the now-thats-just-scary dept.
dioscaido writes "If you search Google for Kazaa Lite, you'll find the results a bit lacking. Ironically enough, Sharman Networks, using the DMCA, filed a legal complaint to block Kazaa Lite sites. " Google links the DMCA request at the end of the results which contain the URLs in question, but the URLs aren't really the point. It's scary that the DMCA makes URLs a copyright violation. How long before libraries can't index books? Or own them?
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In some ways this is similar to some people's fears of Microsoft making its own search engine and bundling it with the web browser built into Windows. Beginning users may use the most easy-to-find search function they can to search the web, and unknowingly get results controlled by Microsoft.
Topic is "controlled" results in search engines. At some point you all may want to specify whether we're talking about restrictions made via legal complaints like the above quote, or rigged results based on which companies are paying for advertising space. Discuss.
Google Removes Links in Response to DMCA Complaint
Posted by CmdrTaco on Sunday August 31, @11:08AM
from the now-thats-just-scary dept.
dioscaido writes "If you search Google for Kazaa Lite, you'll find the results a bit lacking. Ironically enough, Sharman Networks, using the DMCA, filed a legal complaint to block Kazaa Lite sites. " Google links the DMCA request at the end of the results which contain the URLs in question, but the URLs aren't really the point. It's scary that the DMCA makes URLs a copyright violation. How long before libraries can't index books? Or own them?
<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
In some ways this is similar to some people's fears of Microsoft making its own search engine and bundling it with the web browser built into Windows. Beginning users may use the most easy-to-find search function they can to search the web, and unknowingly get results controlled by Microsoft.
Topic is "controlled" results in search engines. At some point you all may want to specify whether we're talking about restrictions made via legal complaints like the above quote, or rigged results based on which companies are paying for advertising space. Discuss.
Comments
An individual search engine choosing how to rank its results or whatever, well, that's fine. They can do whatever they want, and you have the option of just using a different search engine. What's NOT okay is if the engine in question claims to be indexing everything and returning all results equally, because then it's fraud.
Excellent work, google.
Use their own public docs against them... I love that little link at the bottom of the page, as it not only complies with the DMCA, but also shows the best sites for kazaa lite <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->
Long term: Scary as hell. Just because you can't "see" the internet like you can a library doesn't mean you can censor it, because it'ts not "real"....
Bleh. It's not good, and I hate hte DMCA for SPecifically these reasons.
Many actions are illegal. The information on how to do them never is. It should remain that way. You can get books on explosives from your local library.
Now, we're also talking about blocking certain urls, not blocking the search, so you could search and find out how bombs work or their mechanisms and such, but why should they allow you to get urls from websites that teach how to make household bombs ? Even if only 50% of the people who visited the website made bombs, would it be worth it to cut out the other 50% so that people aren't at risk to injury or death ?
I know how to make bombs. Why? Because I like to have the knowledge. I like to know how things work, and I'm sure I'm not alone here. I have no intent to use my knowledge to commit an illegal act. I know how to generate fake credit card numbers, but that's because I want to know the pattern. Not because I want to commit an illegal act.
I think it's wrong, because it's stopping people who want knowledge. If someone was going to make a bomb, they'd find out anyway. They're not going to search "How to make a bomb" on Google, see that the URLs are censored and say "Well... I give up." If they really want to make a bomb, they can find out how anyway.
Parents could use that website to learn about how to protect their children and to teach them what to watch out for. People designing safety education programs for children would find that more useful probably than the limited statistical information that the police could offer them.
Every information has neccessary uses. Information on building bombs could help you recognize a bomb, or recognize when someone is buying the neccesary chemicals to make a bomb, or even show you how to diffuse a bomb.
Malevolent people are going to be a lot more persistant in finding information than people with just a sane passing interest. Blocking links in a search engine only stops the average people and the legitimate uses.
Here is a great article on the subject <a href='http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2003/03/31/knowledge/index.html' target='_blank'>http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2003/03/...edge/index.html</a>
However, it's poor reasoning saying that instead of taking preventive measures on the internet, you should just teach kids to avoid the situations. Listen, learning to molest children isn't an intriguing topic like military technology, you would visit that site because you want to get specific information, then perform it.
That is equivalent to saying that we shouldn't read 1984 because it could teach people how to set up a fascist police state. Any information that tells you how something is done is essential to figuring out how to prevent it. We are much better off having information about how children get seduced and using it for our own protection then we would be by trying to keep the information out of the wrong hands.
How would you do research to protect your child from being molested?
On a lighter note, I got a kick out of the hax0r google translation for the DMCA notice:
y0, 9 0F y3r R3zU|7z vv3R3 DMCA'd! K|1x h34R 2 z33 d@ x0Mpl@1Nt!
Honestly, I think we both agree raping children is wrong, but it seems that you're very inclined to try and disagree with me.
Not at all. Obviously. But you still haven't answered my point that the best way to learn how to prevent something is to learn how it is done.
i think that the internet should be cencored, but selectively, nonpolitically and individually
I remember reading (I think from a newspaper), that the Chinese version of Yahoo blocked terms such "Tianamen Square" and "Falun Gong"; pretty sad.
As for censorship issues... I personally want to see things like child porn and racism removed. We don't tolerate it anywhere else in life, so why should we allow it outside? But even with this statement, I must admit I am very hypocritical. I have some movies and software downloaded from the Internet which is obviously theft; we don't tolerate it in the real world; so why should it be seen any less of a crime in the virtual one? Not that I download like a mad man, but theft is theft, and hopefully I can cease this habit in the future.
Even so, I have to admit the Internet was never meant to be tamed, thus I can't really say I'm fully in favour of the use of any censorship. If such things are to exist on the Internet, I can only ask that it is under high surveilance by those opposed.
i also belive sharman networks is an evil money grabbing corp, who deservers to burn in hell for there use of spyware. <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->
Or in this case, the hunted have become the hunters...