Social media giant Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook) is looking at a potentially long legal battle after its attempts to shake off a lawsuit from Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest, failed woefully. This follows after a US judge rejected the firm’s attempt to dismiss the lawsuit, which borders on deepfake crypto scam ads that used Forrest’s image without his consent.
Judge Rejects Section 230 Defense as Forrest Alleges Misappropriation and Active Role by Meta Platforms
In its defense argument, Meta quoted Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, a law that generally shields online platforms from liability for content posted by third-party or users. However, Judge Casey Pitts was not having any of it. The judge ruled that Meta has failed to “prove beyond reasonable doubt” that Section 230 applied in this particular case.
The judge’s decision allows Forrest to fully pursue his claims against Meta. This means that he can argue that Meta profited from the fraudulent ads and failed to take steps to prevent them. Additionally, the lawsuit can allege that Meta played a more active role than simply hosting the ads. According to Forrest, the platform’s advertising tools make it complicit as these contributed greatly to the fraudulent ads. Therefore, Meta is liable beyond simply hosting the content, he added.
Broader Implications
Following the judge’s decision, Forrest has expressed his satisfaction. According to a publication by The Australian, he hailed the pronouncement as a victory and noted that it’s the first time ever that a US court would deny a social media platform Section 230 protection for advertising practices.
This case is poised to have broader implications for the way social media companies handle advertising content from now henceforth. Now more than ever, the platforms will likely take up proper responsibility to vet ads that are being displayed on their platforms.
While the outcome of this lawsuit remains to be seen, it’s worth noting that this initial ruling already has massive implications for both Meta Platforms and the broader social media environment. It makes a good example for future lawsuits against social media platforms in terms of potentially harmful user-generated content.
