Russian activists want Google Maps to remove content about ‘erotic locations’
Activists from the youth wing of United Russia, the ruling political party in Russia, are demanding that Google remove from its Maps service information about various X-rated locations.
In a letter to Julia Solovieva, Google’s general director in Russia, activists from a group called Mediaguard—a project by Molodaya Gvardiya (“Young Guard”)—say they’ve found more than a hundred entries on Google Maps that contain information about illegal casinos and “adults places” of an “erotic nature,” like gay clubs. The activists say they are concerned that the information is accessible to children.
A Google representative allegedly told the newspaper Izvestia that the company has procedures in place for removing content from its Maps service, when it violates Google’s own rules or breaks the law, and users are free to submit specific complaints about inaccurate data.
“'Mediaguard' in no way wants to restrict anyone’s rights, but children might access such [adult] information,” the letter to Google reads.