Protecting individuals in the digital age from online search engine activity

• Pages: 713-730
• Author: Beatriz Aguinaga Glaria

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PROTECTING INDIVIDUALS IN THE DIGITAL AGE FROM

ONLINE SEARCH ENGINE ACTIVITY

BEATRIZ AGUINAGA GLARIA



Spain.

SUMMARY: 1. INTRODUCTION. 2. FUNCTIONALITY AND IMPACT OF

ONLINE SEARCH ENGINES. 2.1. Brief overview of its functionality. 2.2.

Impact on fundamental rights. 3. EUROPEAN REGULATORY APPROACH

TO THE PROTECTION OF INDIVIDUALS AGAINST ONLINE SEARCH EN-

GINES. 3.1. Introduction to the so-called digital constitutionalism. 3.2.

The GDPR’s role in strengthening personal data protection and indivi-

dual privacy. 3.3. The DSA’s role in the protection of individuals from

very large online search engines. 3.4. The role of the AIA in protecting

individuals from AI-powered online search engines. 4. CONCLUSION. 5.

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

1. INTRODUCTION.

The Internet has become the ideal platform for exercising informational

freedoms. Moreover, it has redefined traditional dynamics, enabling the freedom

to express ideas, share opinions, or report facts beyond a vertical relationship

between professionals and citizens and has evolved into a horizontal interaction

among individuals. This characteristic, combined with the immediacy and speed

of the digital environment, has led European jurisprudence1 to describe the

1 Among others: European Court of Human Rights, case number 3002/03 and 23676/03,

10 March 2009, President: Mr. L. Garlicki, ECLI:CE:ECHR:2009:0310JUD000300203, paragraph

BEATRIZ AGUINAGA GLARIA

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Internet as an unprecedented tool for the exercise of freedom of expression that

enhances public access to news and generally facilitates the communication of

information.

However, it is equally important to recognize that the Internet’s unique

"  {  #{      &  

increased risk of fundamental rights violations.

The potential risks posed by online search engines were first spotlighted

in the landmark Google Spain case.2 In paragraph 80 of this ruling, the Court

of Justice of the European Union observed that “the operator of a search engine

may significantly affect the fundamental rights to respect for private life and to

the protection of personal data by providing, through search results, a detailed

profile of a person, combining information scattered across the web and creating

a structured and ubiquitous view.” In this line, the European Court of Human

Rights3 has also recognized that online expressions have an “amplifying effect”

characterized by their reach, immediacy, and permanence, which enhances their

potential to infringe upon fundamental rights.

Within this context, this paper aims to identify the existing European

regulatory provisions designed to safeguard individuals’ fundamental rights

from digital private actors, with a focus on online search engines. The paper

will first examine the operations of online search engines and their potentially

adverse effects on individuals, and will then address the European regulatory

provisions applicable to online search engines that play a key role in the

constitutionalisation of Internet governance, namely the General Data Protection

Regulation4 (hereinafter, GDPR), the Digital Services Act5 (hereinafter, DSA),

and the Artificial Intelligence Act6 (hereinafter, AIA). Finally, it will analyse

27; European Court of Human Rights, case number 64569/09, June 16, 2015, President: Mr. D.

Spielmann, ECLI:CE:ECHR:2015:0616JUD006456909, paragraph 110.

2 Court of Justice of the European Union, Cases C-131/12, 13 May 2014, Rapporteur: Mr.

M. Ilesic, ECLI:EU:C:2014:317.

3 Among others: European Court of Human Rights, case number 33014/05, August

5, 2011, President: Mr. D. Spielmann, ECLI:CE:ECHR:2011:0505JUD003301405, paragraph 63;

European Court of Human Rights, case number 48876/08, April 22, 2013, President: Mr. D.

Spielmann, ECLI:CE:ECHR:2013:0422JUD004887608, paragraph 124; European Court of Human

Rights, case number 18030/11, November 8, 2016, President: Mr. G. Raimondi, ECLI:CE:ECHR:2016

:1108JUD001803011, paragraph 168.

4 Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April

2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the

free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation)

(O.J. L 119/1., 4 May 2016).

5 Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October

2022 on a single market for digital services and amending Directive 2000/31/EC (Digital Services

Act) (O.J. L 277/1, 27 October 2022).

6 Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June

2024 laying down harmonised rules on artificial intelligence and amending Regulations (EC) No