I do not believe Google should be using any kind of filter to be honest. You’re local computer should alert/protect you from spyware/adware based sites – it’s not the responsibility of the search engine.

They are baising results if you trip their filter as mentioned. The web is not about control and Google is starting to put things in perspective.

Have you heard they can now track, in real time, your location? That is another story altogether.

You ever watch The Simpsons? Homer, a certifiable moron, sits in a nuclear power plant pushing a button. If he messes up he can shut down power for the entire town, cause a nuclear meltdown, etc. Such things have been plot lines in the show. This is, of course, a joke, that such important things would be left to the purview of a single person without systemic checks and protections is a big joke, one the writers of The Simpsons have milked time and again.

That Google allowed a system whereby a single human typo could disable their search engine is where their problem is. That would be like say, T Mobile having one employee who could make a typo and shut down cell service for all of their subscribers.

Furthermore, it is alarming because if Google has no preventative measures for such an obvious typo, they likely have none for less obvious ones. What if your site is bluewidgets.com and blue-widgets.com trips this filter but the person accidentially forgets the hyphen? Then it sucks to be you. Sure, you could appeal Google and maybe get it worked out, but in the meantime you’ll lose money.

Furthermore there is nothing in the law books for “accidental” libel or, understanding if the offending material is quickly and apologetically corrected. It also has nothing to do with whether or not a business has a right to get traffic from Google. The issues that matter are, is it false? Is it defaming? Would a reasonable person believe it? And did it cause economic damage to the plaintiff?

The fact that it was accidental might save you from any punitive damages, but actual damages are always fair game. And the fact that without Google you’d have no traffic to lose from a Google error does not give Google the right to defame a business. Anymore than the phone company can publish defamatory ads in their phone book.

Now the may/does issue does give Google an out, except they say that Googlebot DID (presented factually but false) find malware when visiting your site, then they say that this malware MAY harm your computer. Its the same as if you printed posters saying that a certain restaurant has a rat problem and you may get sick eating there. Claiming that the rat problem exists is the libel.

I expect Google will reevaluate this system to a high degree in light of what happened.

How would there possibly be a lawsuit? It’s not Google’s responsibility to provide you with traffic so I think that argument would be thrown out of court. And is it libel if it was an accident and once that accident was discovered, was corrected as quickly as possible? I can’t see that it would be; furthermore they say “may” contain, not “does” contain.

The fact that such a thing is even under a human’s control. One guy makes a typo and Google breaks? That, is serious.