The Argentine Supreme Court heard arguments Thursday demanding that Google take down links between pornographic websites and a model suing the Internet giant because she is not a sex worker.<\/p>\n
Maria Belen Rodriguez, 30, launched a battle against Google and Yahoo eight years ago over search engine links to pornographic websites that showed non-erotic photographs of her.<\/p>\n
Two years ago, Yahoo complied but not Google, which was fined 42,000 pesos ($5,200). Rodriguez is demanding more than $37,000.<\/p>\n
A civil court had previously ruled in favor of the model but dropped the fine to $6,200.<\/p>\n
Some websites showed images of Rodriguez surrounded by pornographic images while a click on her name linked to pornographic images of women on other sites.<\/p>\n
“One day, my dad entered my name on Google and he landed on a porn site,” Rodriguez told AFP.<\/p>\n
“This has caused me a ton of problems. I lost job opportunities because of this.”<\/p>\n
A lower court had ordered Google to block links between Rodriguez’s name and pornographic websites, pointing to “subjective responsibility.”<\/p>\n
“I hope that the right to freedom of expression will not substitute the right to privacy and human dignity. There must be a limit,” Rodriguez said after the hearing before the high court.<\/p>\n
Rodriguez said her troubles began prior to the emergence of another Argentine model of nearly the same name.<\/p>\n
The other model — Maria Belen Rodriguez Cozzani — lives in Italy, where she has defended herself against accusations of being linked to parties attended by former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi.<\/p>\n
Google lawyer Mariano Florencio Grondona said the links could have been blocked earlier but Rodriguez declined to identify the controversial websites.<\/p>\n
The US Internet titan rejects any responsibility on website content, saying it only serves as an intermediary.<\/p>\n
“It’s impossible to control content,” agreed Yahoo lawyer Alberto Bueres.<\/p>\n
Google says it receives 100 million requests each year for data removal from search engines, most related to copyright concerns.<\/p>\n
The Supreme Court’s decision is expected in June.<\/p>\n
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