On The Right To Be Forgotten

With the development of Internet technologies, especially Web2.0, digital technology and information storage technology, the Internet has become indispensable in citizens’ life, study and work, leading to a drastic change to citizens’ social life. As citizens unavoidably release mass personal information online during using the Internet, and network digital memory is beyond the limits of human memory,cyberspace information will be stored permanently. This will undoubtedly bring potential harm to citizens’ future life. Particularly, the permanent storage of negative personal information will encumber citizens, thus hindering them from freely developing their personalities and pursuing their desired life. Therefore, the EU came up with the right to be forgotten in the hope of eliminating the adverse impact of the permanent storage of personal network public information on the free development of personalities.On January 25, 2012, the European Commission came up with the right to be forgotten in the Rules of the European Parliament and Council on the Protection of Individuals with Regard to the Processing and Free Movement of Personal Data. On March 12, 2014, the Rules were adopted by a majority of votes at a plenary session of the European Parliament. On April 13, 2014, the EU Supreme Court made a ruling in favor of the right to be forgotten, wrapping up the process of the right from theory to practice.With the emergence of the right to be forgotten as the penetrating point, this text analyzes the right’s concept and essence, and defines the subject, object, content,exercise and restrictive conditions of the right. On the basis of comparing the EU with the USA in the legislation of the right, in light of China’s facts of protection of personal network public information, this text indicates the necessity of the right to China’s personal information protection and its reference significance to China’s legislation.