英语听力精选进阶版 7236（在线收听）

Background: 欧洲居民将第一次拥有申请“被公司忘记的权利”。根据欧盟新的隐私保护法提议，人们有权通知一个公司删除该公司在互联网上所有有关他们的个人信息。

Just how much control should people have over their online reputations?

Should they be able to demand that an unflattering photo be permanently deleted from a website like Facebook? Does everything people write online have to stay there? What about bank details, addresses - can websites hold onto this information forever?

These were the kinds of questions being asked by the European Commission as it investigated the issue of internet privacy. Its guiding principle throughout has been what it called "the right to be forgotten". It has now decided on what this mysterious sounding phrase actually means.

It means that a person does have the right to demand their personal information be permanently deleted if it is data that they themselves have put online. But they don't have the right to have things like unflattering blogs or newspaper profiles written by others deleted.

The EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding said the changes will help build trust in online services.

The Commission also says that businesses should have to tell their customers within 24 hours if their online accounts have been hacked into.

Some internet companies have reacted with concern to the proposals, warning that they could become bogged down in trying to meet the new requirements and that could affect their ability to grow.

Quiz

True or false: People have always known what 'the right to be forgotten' means.

False. It has now been decided what this means.

Will people now be able to demand that websites remove data they have uploaded themselves?

Yes.

Will people be able to demand blogs or profiles they don't like are removed?

No. They don't have the right to have things like unflattering blogs or newspaper profiles written by others deleted.

Does the EU Justice Commissioner hope to make internet users more comfortable about giving over their data?

Yes. She said the changes will help build trust in online services.

Glossary 词汇表

reputations 声誉

unflattering 不好的

deleted 被删除

investigated 调查

privacy 个人隐私

guiding principle 指导性原则

mysterious 难理解的，神秘的

blogs 博客

build trust 建立信任

hacked into 被黑客袭击