The internet revolution has completely changed the way we consume and share information. However, and similar to many other cases where technology moves faster than the law, frictions arise that have social, moral, economic and philosophical implications.
For example, imagine that you run a respectable financial consulting business, but your name in the Google or Facebook search engine leads straight to photos from your bachelor party from ten years ago. And what if it's not an embarrassing picture, but real explosive business information. For example, a criminal conviction or past debts? Well, in recent years, the question arises more and more whether a person has the right to instruct search engines and websites to delete information about him upon request.
The Spanish lawyer and his war on Google
Now, a precedent ruling which was recently accepted by the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg (May 2014), could be an important milestone in this discussion. An act that was so was. A Spanish lawyer accumulated debts about 15 years ago which forced him to sell all his property in order to pay his creditors. Years later, and even though the issue was handled legally, the lawyer noticed that a Google search of his name leads to news in a Spanish newspaper about past debts. Due to the image damage caused to him as a result, he filed a complaint on the subject with the Spanish Information Commissioner. After in-depth discussions on the issue, the Spanish authority ordered Google to remove the links in question from its search results.
Google filed an appeal against the Spanish Data Commissioner's decision, and the Spanish Supreme Court placed the hot potato in the hands of the European Court of Justice. After almost four years of hearings, the High Court of the European Union ruled that Google, at least in some cases, must grant network users the "right to be forgotten".
The ruling of the European Court once again raises the question of privacy rights in the online space. However, the distance to the promised land is still great. Even the judgment of the European Court was not unequivocal. For example, the court made a reservation and stated that when the relevant information at issue is of public importance (for example – a previous conviction of a politician), it is possible that the right to freedom of information prevails over the right to privacy. Simply put, this is not a simple business.
"Not to be network objects"
While the courts around the world (including some famous cases on the subject discussed in Israel) are dealing with the issue at the legal level, there are those who are already providing the solution. "Instead of being the ones who control the Internet, many of us have become over time objects of the network," claims Michael Partick, owner of one of the largest reputation management companies in the US. Partick recognized the problem in question almost 10 years ago after graduating from Harvard Law School. As part of a fascinating interview conducted with him a few months ago in the New York Times newspaper, we all got a taste of the special world of online reputation management. Here are some of the main things:
Reputation management, what does it mean for us?
"Today, the Internet is the main source of information through which we communicate, find services, purchase products, receive information and more. When someone's name is associated with negative search results, it can have far-reaching consequences. It could be a guest house that carries on its back negative reactions from customers, a business owner who was convicted of fraudulent offenses in the past, a celebrity against whom an indictment was filed and even a private person who in the past uploaded texts that do not reflect his views today. In short, it can be anyone, even you. The correct and only way to deal with this is by reputation management.
How can companies and organizations, as well as individuals, be helped in terms of online reputation management?
"In the first step, when a company decides to perform accurate monitoring of reputation management, we must collect all the reactions and reports about it in the online space. This, from the clear business concept that customers on the Internet are often looking for opinions and recommendations about a business and/or services and products. We focus of course on the negative results. It could be a disgruntled customer, a frustrated employee, an ex-spouse, a competitor, and more. In the second step, we work to introduce positive content about the client, with the aim of pushing down the negative advertising. Also, if we are talking about negative reactions, we guide the client on how to deal with them in cyberspace."
How do you get positive responses from customers?
"One of the most important parameters of online reputation management is obtaining positive responses and/or positive content. As I have already said, our reputation on the net is built first and foremost from authentic responses from surfers and customers. The problem is that good responses usually come in only certain areas. For example, tourism, medicine, law, architecture and the like. On the other hand, in some "gray" areas More like dry cleaning, a customer will write a comment only in a negative situation. Therefore, we teach business owners how to deal with customers and how to motivate them to write positive comments about the service or product online. For example, by sending an email after receiving the service to satisfied customers. In addition, it is important to make sure that receiving the recommendation is simple and convenient for the customer. As effortlessly as possible. As for the positive content, we make sure to upload original positive content about the business and publish it in the relevant places. These two arms significantly strengthen the positive reputation of the business online, and push down the negative results.
When should a business or a person who has been attacked on the network start acting?
"First of all, I advise my clients to take a deep breath and relax. not to act under pressure and most importantly – Don't take it personally. For example, you don't always have to act and there are cases when the action will actually cause damage. It is also necessary to distinguish whether it is a negative advertisement that is intended only for the business owner and is not found in the entire virtual space. Meaning, the business that was attacked, and this is of course also true for private individuals, needs to check what the visibility of the problem is. Namely, how visible the negative advertising is and whether access to it is easy and fast.
It is important to remember that fighting with negative reactions can sometimes cause more harm than good. As the well-known American saying – When you wrestle a pig, you'll both be covered in mud. Therefore, reputation management is a professional matter that needs to be done wisely and with a precise strategy. In addition, this is of course also ongoing and consistent work.