A New York college student who’s suing Google and other search engines over an ex-boyfriend’s “revenge porn” spoke out for the first time Wednesday, telling The Post she wants federal lawmakers to stop shielding the internet giants over the obscene material.
The 30-year-old West African woman — who came to America, learned English and four years later was admitted to a top university — said the US should follow the example of the European Union, which has a “right to be forgotten” law allowing people to escape embarrassing internet search results.
“I believe that something has to be done. It’s not right that Google can use my name,” said the woman, who has a unique four-word name.
As The Post reported Wednesday, she filed a first-of-its-kind lawsuit asking a Manhattan judge to order that Google, Yahoo and Bing permanently delete her name from their search engines.
“The day I broke up with him, he sent me an email and a text message and said, ‘You’re going to be on Google,’” the woman said of her ex.
A month after their split, she realized he’d followed through. “I happened to go on the internet, typed my name and I found out like that,” she said, her voice shaking.
The 1996 Communications Decency Act shields companies like Google from liability for content posted by third parties.
A Brooklyn lawyer who specializes in defending victims of non-consensual pornography, known as revenge porn, said the decades-old law is outdated.
“The [law] went into effect … when the internet was this adorable infant … and federal lawmakers wanted to spare these poor little companies from greedy plaintiffs,” said attorney Carrie A. Goldberg.
“Now the David and Goliath relationship has flipped. And the internet companies are among the wealthiest … in our country and really don’t need or deserve that protection.”
Unlike in at least 30 other states, revenge porn is not illegal in New York.
‘I feel violated every day. Each time I go on Google.’
The plaintiff, who wants to be a child psychologist, says opportunities have dried up due to the filthy postings.
“I was called for interviews with many companies. It was going fine and all of a sudden there was nothing,” she said.
“I feel violated every day. Each time I go on Google.”
Her attorney, Ryanne Konan, told The Post the internet giants have ignored his requests for help.
Yahoo declined to comment. Reps for Google and Bing did not return messages seeking comment.