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Judge orders Google to hand over URLs...
... but users' search queries are off-limits

By Anne Broache

Published: Monday 20 March 2006

In a move that alleviates some privacy concerns, a federal judge granted part of a Justice Department (DoJ) request for Google search data but said users' search queries were off-limits.

The 21-page order, issued Friday in San Jose, California, by US District Judge James Ware, represented little change from his stance at a hearing earlier this week.

Ware had indicated he would grant the US Justice Department access to a portion of Google's index of websites but said he was hesitant to ask for users' search terms because of worries about the perception by the public that what they type into Google.com is subject to government scrutiny.

Ware said in his Friday order that the government demonstrated a "substantial need" for Google's random URL sample, which it plans to run through filtering software to test the software's anti-pornography filtering prowess as the DoJ prepares to defend a child-protection law in court. But the DoJ did not meet that standard regarding search queries, Ware said.

He noted that 50,000 URLs must be turned over, unless both parties agree to an alternative scenario on or before 3 April.

Neither Google nor Justice Department representatives could be reached immediately for comment on Friday.

Google associate general counsel Nicole Wong said in a post on the company's blog on Friday evening that the search giant would comply "fully" with the judge's order. She wrote: "What his ruling means is that neither the government nor anyone else has carte blanche when demanding data from internet companies," calling it "a clear victory for our users and for our company".

The decision drew cautious praise from a privacy advocate.

Beth Givens, director of the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, said: "It's a well-reasoned decision, and it does minimise privacy and civil liberties implications."

Givens went on to say that she still doesn't think the government needs Google's data: "They can design a research study that would accomplish much the same. It's a bad precedent for the government to be strong-arming search engine companies for such sensitive data."

CNET News.com's Declan McCullagh and Elinor Mills contributed to this report

Anne Broache writes for CNET News.com