Duncan at Tech Crunch reports (via Globes Online) that Google voluntarily gave up IP information on a user to plaintiffs in a defamation case.

The anonymous blogger made accusations of impropriety against members of a city council in the town of Shaarei Tikva, who were running for re-election.

The settlement stipulates that 72 hours before a hearing on the case at the Rishon LeZion Magistrates Court, the council members would leave the blogger a message on his blog summoning him to the hearing, or else his IP address would be handed over. The notice would invite the blogger to disclose his identity, participate in the hearing, or oppose the disclosure of his identity by filing a motion as “anonymous”.

On the TechCrunch post, an anonymous Google source maintains the company did nothing wrong. It insisted that Google opposed the injunction and was subsequently court-ordered to provide the information.

In your comment to M Freitas you say “I’d note that Google voluntarily handed these details over, if the court had ordered them to do so, so be it but if they are serious about privacy they would have pushed it to that level, not just caved in at the first opportunity”. As you can see from the details above Google did oppose the injunction in court, we did not just cave in at the first opportunity and we did argue that the blogger in question should have the chance to make their case. But having considered all sides of the argument the judge ordered that the IP address be handed over.

In comments, TechCrunch owner Michael Arrington says Globe Online is printing a retraction.