Google first launched its Transparency Report in early 2010, with the intention of disclosing the number of government requests Google receives to remove information from the web. Google promised to release these numbers twice a year, in an attempt to keep the internet a space that is both free and open. While completing its latest report, the company found that government surveillance continues to rise. In response to the published graphs the company explained:

You can see the country-by-country trends for requests to hand over user data and to remove content from our services in the Transparency Report itself, but in aggregate around the world, the numbers continue to go up.

The number of government requests to remove content from Google stayed constant from 2009 to 2011, yet has surged in 2012. In the first half of 2012, there were 1,791 requests from government officials around the world to remove 17,746 pieces of content. There were also 20,938 inquiries from government entities around the world. These requests were for information about 34,614 accounts. 

The company concluded its report by stating that it only accounts for a portion of government control, saying: 

The information we disclose is only an isolated sliver showing how governments interact with the Internet, since for the most part we don’t know what requests are made of other technology or telecommunications companies.

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Claudia McNeilly writes for the Toronto Standard. You can follow her on twitter at @claudiamcneilly

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