Last week, a ruling by an Italian court in Milan set a troubling precedent by imposing a six-month suspended jail sentence on three Google, Inc., executives and one Google, Inc., officer over a video that was posted depicting an autistic boy being bullyed by a group of teenagers in Turin, Italy. Under European Union privacy law, Internet providers are responsible for removing content if a third-party complains about it. The video was removed less than 24 hours after being posted, but that still did not prevent Italian judge Oscar Magi from finding the three executives and officer guilty of violating Italy’s privacy laws. Reaction to the verdict in the U.S. triggered outrage from various communities including the U.S. Senate, Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, and Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton. The takeaway is that organizations should be more concerned with adopting an internal data governance program so that a defense against possible criminal prosecution can be mitigated.
