When an Italian court convicted three current and former Google executives for failing to comply with Italy’s privacy code, it also created a firestorm of anger from organizations rallying for free expression and an open Internet. The convictions came after three Google executives — David Drummond, Peter Fleischer and Arvind Desikan — and one former Google executive, George Reyes, were accused of criminal defamation and breaking privacy laws.
The four executives were first accused because of a controversial video that was uploaded to its Google Video service, despite not having any involvement in making, uploading or viewing the video. None of the executives had any knowledge of the video until it was removed, according to Google.
The controversial video showed students at a school in Turin, Italy, harassing a schoolmate with Down syndrome.
The Internet search giant responded the same way it has in the past with other law-enforcement groups, helping the Italian police to identify the person responsible for uploading the video, according to Google.
Google immediately said it would appeal the court’s ruling based on the fact that Google’s employees on trial had no involvement in the actions in question.
Leslie Harris, president of the Center for Democracy and Technology, said the Google verdict sets a dangerous precedent that threatens free expression and stifles innovation on the global Internet.
“This ill-advised prosecution and conviction of Google senior executives is plainly contrary to the 2000 EU E-Commerce Directive and to the best practices of thriving Internet economies,” Harris said.
The European Union E-Commerce Directive was created to promote the development of e-commerce in the EU, making it the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world, according to the European Commission. A legal framework for the directive was created to remove obstacles to cross-border online services in the EU and…