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posted by Fnord666 on Friday August 16 2019, @01:05AM   Printer-friendly
from the don't-not-do-evil dept.

[Ed note: This story was originally posted 2019-08-15 04:41 UTC but was lost when we had the site crash Thursday morning. Prior comments have, unfortunately, been lost. --martyb]

'Google Blocked TorrentFreak From Appearing in Search Feature'

Documents released by whistleblower Zachary Vorhies suggests that Google actively blocked hundreds of sites, including TorrentFreak, from its Google Now service. The blocklist doesn't provide a specific reason for the blockade, but other sites are flagged for having a high user block rate or for peddling hoax stories. Vorhies has shared the documents with the US Department of Justice.

At TorrentFreak, we have written hundreds of articles about website blocking and censorship. Today, we're featured in one ourselves.

Leaked Google documents reveal that TorrentFreak.com shows up in one of Google's previously unknown blocklists, which actively hides our domain from the Google Now service.

Google Now was a Google search feature that presented users with informational cards, to provide users with more details on subjects of interest to them. While the brand no longer exists, the feature is still present in the Google Android app and its feed.

The controversial blocklist is part of a treasure trove of files that were leaked by whistleblower Zachary Vorhies, who shared them with Project Veritas. The entire collection of files uncovers many previously unknown policies and actions from Google.

The story that broke SoylentNews™.

See also (Zachary Vorhies in the news): YouTube Software Engineer Describes Seeing Altercation In Building Courtyard
America's Greatest Makers is like American Idol for geeks, so we talked to one

Previously: Veritas Claims Leaked Internal E-Mails from Google Showing Political Bias of Results


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  • (Score: 2) by janrinok on Friday August 16 2019, @10:51AM (4 children)

    by janrinok (52) Subscriber Badge on Friday August 16 2019, @10:51AM (#880986) Journal

    Signalling disagreement shows a willingness to debate, a thing that I long gave up in relation with jmorris.

    So ignore him if you feel he is not worth speaking to.

    Starting Score:    1  point
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   2  
  • (Score: 3, Informative) by c0lo on Friday August 16 2019, @11:40AM (2 children)

    by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Friday August 16 2019, @11:40AM (#881002) Journal

    Explain this to me please, why should I stop expressing my opinion by the way of modding?
    More or less, everybody does it (so the final mod is an act of balancing by the community), and it's natural to be so - nobody has God-like knowledge to know the absolute truth, the mod is inherently subjective, an expression of personal opinion too.

    --
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
    • (Score: 2) by janrinok on Friday August 16 2019, @12:39PM (1 child)

      by janrinok (52) Subscriber Badge on Friday August 16 2019, @12:39PM (#881020) Journal

      everybody does it

      Remember when you were young and your mother said something like 'if your friends put their hands in the fire, would you do it too?". That others abuse the moderation system does not make that abuse right. He wasn't trolling (IMHO), he was expressing an opinion with which you disagreed.

      • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Friday August 16 2019, @01:30PM

        by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Friday August 16 2019, @01:30PM (#881041) Journal

        Remember when you were young and your mother said something like 'if your friends put their hands in the fire, would you do it too?".

        Oh, Jan, are you doing it again? Didn't I explained well enough that you aren't quite in a position "to teach the kids a lesson"?
        What makes you think that you know better than all the soylenters?

        That others abuse the moderation system does not make that abuse right.

        What if that is how it should be and nobody is abusing anything but instead they are expressing their sincere opinions by modding?
        And your expectation of something better is an idealism that doesn't practically serves anyone?

        As small as it is, S/N is already a mature community, can you please make an effort of seeing it as such and not like a bunch of grandkids to be kept on a short leash?

        He wasn't trolling (IMHO), he was expressing an opinion with which you disagreed.

        No, mate, I suggest you stop believing it for even a moment (or stop trying to pull wool over soylenters eyes, in the eventuality that's your agenda).

        Someone expressing an opinion sounds like "I think... The way I see the things... I heard X, if that's true then..."
        But no, when it comes to certain topics**, he's using the more abject and refined disinformation techniques that I had the unfortunate occasion to be subjected for my first 25 years of life, under a communist regime in Eastern Europe.

        Now, he may be sincere what he is saying (being brainwashed and transformed in a useful idiot, he wouldn't be the first nor the last).
        Or he may be doing it on deliberately powered by whatever ideological agenda or material interest. Or any combination of the two.

        But... bottom line, do you really think it matters why is he doing it?
        I know it's a waste of time to play his sick game, it doesn't need to take years of same-old-same-old jmorris posts to realize it's futile.

        ---

        ** it's not a knee-jerk reaction in me triggered by a jmorris post, he has enough posts I consider balanced enough, now and then some which I can ever agree with (very rare, but it does happen). Even though I still have mod points now, I don't rush to bury all his comments.

        --
        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 16 2019, @11:24PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 16 2019, @11:24PM (#881341)

    So ignore him if you feel he is not worth speaking to.

    It would be a hell of a lot easier to ignore jmorris if his comments on just about anything these days wasn't pure white noise. Just sayin'.