An investigation by the Observer reveals that Google has facilitated censorship requests from around 150 countries, including both democracies and autocracies. Since 2011, the company has removed content, particularly in response to authoritarian regimes such as Russia and China's governments, which target anti-state content and criticisms. As the requests for content removals have surged, Google maintains an unclear and opaque process for handling these requests. This raises critical concerns about its influence on public information and the implications on disinformation alongside human rights violations.
Google has cooperated with autocratic regimes around the world, including the Kremlin in Russia and the Chinese Communist party, to facilitate censorship requests.
Google's cooperation has involved engaging with the administrations of about 150 countries since 2011 that want information scrubbed from their public domains.
Information can be taken down for a variety of reasons, such as copyright infringement, privacy breaches, defamation, or for violating the company's policies.
The analysis raises questions about Google's role in controlling public information, and in areas such as disinformation, particularly in connection with repressive regimes.
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