Concern 503 · Working draft · editorial review in progress
Search-engine indexing of NCII
Search indexing can make abusive synthetic intimate images easier to discover even when the search engine did not create or host them.
Understanding the concern
A search result is a doorway to material stored elsewhere. Names, thumbnails and links can expose a person to new audiences and make abuse easier to find. Removing that doorway can reduce visibility, although it does not erase the underlying page.
Google provides a process for requesting removal of qualifying personal sexual content, including fake imagery. The distinction between search removal and host removal matters: a person should know which action has occurred and what remains. Services should also make requests possible without forcing people to repeatedly view or circulate harmful material.
An example
An abusive page stops appearing in a name search, but the hosting site still contains it.
Illustrative unless identified as a documented case.
Words in plain English
- Synthetic
- Made by a computer or another artificial process rather than directly recorded from the event being described.
- NCII
- Nonconsensual intimate imagery: intimate images shared or created without the person's agreement. Fabricated images can also cause real harm.
Evidence and its limits
This is documentation for one provider's process. Eligibility and other providers' policies differ; delisting is not whole-internet deletion.
Google Search Help · Platform help
Remove personal sexual content from Google Search ↗ (opens in a new tab)Search-removal process for qualifying real or fake sexual imagery; search removal does not remove the hosting website.
Broader frameworks and background
These resources provide context. They do not establish every claim in this concern.
- OECD AI Incidents and Hazards Monitor (opens in a new tab)
incidents
- AI Incident Database (opens in a new tab)
incidents
- International humanitarian law (IHL)
framework
The body of law that governs the conduct of armed conflict and the protection of people who are not fighting, which applies to AI used in or for conflict.
A question to discuss
How should a platform explain the difference between reducing discoverability and removing the original content?
Keep track of different views, what needs checking, and any next step in your own discussion notes.
Open discussion notes →Principles for the conversation
Before you finish · reflect together
Virtues and principles to consider
Virtues are qualities we practice in how we treat people and make choices. They are not scores for judging someone. Use these ideas to explore what a thoughtful response could look like.
Truthfulness
Truthfulness means making claims that match the evidence and being clear about what we do not know. It includes correcting mistakes rather than protecting a polished story.
Check sources, label guesses, and distinguish a trial result from a proven benefit. If AI helped produce a claim, someone still needs to take responsibility for checking it.
Ask together: What can we honestly say, and what still needs checking?
Meaningful conversation
Conversation means making room to understand and be understood. It is more than winning a debate or collecting quick agreement. People can explore a question together without starting from the same view.
Use a concrete example, invite different experiences, and ask what might change each person's mind. Let concerns and hopes sit together long enough to reveal choices that a simple yes-or-no argument would miss.
Ask together: What can we learn from each other before deciding?
Unity
Unity means working toward shared purposes while making room for real differences. It does not require everyone to have the same experience, beliefs, or opinion.
Look for a goal people can share, then explore disagreements about how to reach it. Make sure quieter or less powerful voices can influence the result.
Ask together: What purpose can we share while respecting our differences?
Editorial ratings
These are editorial judgments from the register, not measured probabilities or predictions about your situation.
About the register and scoring →More ways to explore
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