Google has begun restricting search queries such as “BitTorrent”, “torrent”, “RapidShare” and “Megaupload” from its search engine’s auto-complete and instant
service. This has come after Google came under fire from the entertainment sector for not censoring “piracy related” terms.

This announcement hasn’t been made publically by Google, but TorrentFreak has reported that Google has come up with a list of keywords which won’t activate
the auto-complete search service. It is not known what the list actually contains, but you can go check out the filter, by typing “BitTorrent” in the Google
search field. Sure enough, after writing “Bitt”, the keyword doesn’t appear and also doesn’t appear on Google Instant.

Combinations of keywords have also been censored, such as “Ubuntu torrents”. This phrase will also not generate any suggestions in Google.

This move has not been welcomed by all. RapidShare, for one, isn’t too pleased. The compnay said in a statement, “We knew about Google’s plans for quite a few weeks now. We embrace that certain search suggestions will not put a wrong complexion on RapidShare anymore, but we are concerned that at the same time the legitimate interests of our users will also be affected. We believe it was the wrong decision to remove the term ‘RapidShare’ from the search suggestions.”

Simon Morris of BitTorrent expressed his opinion that the filter by Google is very broad. He said, “There’s no reason for Google to throttle search results for our trademarks, including BitTorrent, µTorrent and torrent,” he said. “Indeed, they do still enable auto-complete for many third-party clients that use the BitTorrent protocol, including BitComet, BitLord, and even sites like The Pirate Bay and Isohunt.”