The Right to be Forgotten (RTBF)

The Right to be Forgotten (RTBF)

The Right to be Forgotten (RTBF) is the right of an individual to seek the removal, de-indexing, or masking of personal information from public access when such information is no longer relevant, necessary, or serves no overriding public interest. The objective is to protect a person's privacy, dignity, reputation, and ability to move forward in life without being permanently burdened by past events.

The concept originated in Europe and gained international recognition through the 2014 European Court of Justice judgment in Google Spain v. AEPD, which required search engines to remove links containing outdated or irrelevant personal information. The principle was later incorporated into the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the European Union.