Developer of Turks and Caicos resort gets court to order Google to ID critics

A resort developer has obtained a court order requiring Google Inc. to help uncover the identities of anonymous contributors to an online newspaper that posted articles linking him to government corruption in the Turks and Caicos Islands, according to a report on www.etaiwannews.com.



Developer Cem Kinay of Miami accuses TCI Journal of causing \"reputational damage and lost profits,\" according to a civil complaint filed in California. A court order tells Google to turn over data that may help identify users of the newspaper\'s account with Gmail, the Internet search company\'s e-mail service.



Google said in a statement to The Associated Press it is obligated to comply with \"valid court orders,\" but generally notifies users to give them time to challenge an order, as it did in this case. Google has challenged court orders on its own in the past, notably refusing in 2006 to turn over records of millions of search queries to the U.S. Justice Department.



Shaun Malcolm, a contributor to TCI Journal, said yesterday that he and others involved with the newspaper hope to fight the court order.



Kinay\'s complaint, filed August 19, alleges unidentified contributors \"intentionally and maliciously published defamatory statements\" about the developer and his companies. Allegations included that they engaged in bribery and corruption; tried to bribe the Journal; made secret payments to obtain citizenship; and engaged in efforts to limit free speech.