This week has witnessed increased political attacks against Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (CDA 230) by the Trump Justice Department and federal legislation seeking to “reform it” and the creation of a new association to assist professionals dealing with the many issues involved in content moderation under CDA 230. CDA 230…
In January, Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) argued that Congress needed to act on his Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act to address websites like Backpage.com, which his subcommittee had documented had been promoting sex trafficking with minors. Courts across the country have consistently ruled that a federal law—and this is why Congress has such a key role…
State and federal lawmakers have been grappling for some time over what to do about certain websites that promote prostitution and child sex trafficking. One challenge in doing so is Communications Decency Act Section 230 (CDA230) which immunizes websites for third-party content (subject to certain exceptions) and which has been used to dismiss criminal charges…
ERIC GOLDMAN ON SESTA AND CDA230 Listen On August 1st, Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) introduced S.1693 – the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act of 2017 which would amend the Communications Decency Act (SESTA). SESTA redefines child sex trafficking under 18 USC §1591 to include “knowing conduct by an individual or entity, by any means, that assists,…
In January, the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations released a report on Backpage.com’s Knowing Facilitation of Online Sex Trafficking, but criminal charges against the website have failed due to the site’s immunity for third-party content (prostitution ads) under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (“CDA230”). SESTA Introduced In August, Subcommittee Chairman Rob Portman (R-OH)…
Last week Sacramento Superior Court judge dismissed most of the California Attorney General’s criminal complaint against Backpage CEO Carl Ferrer. Procedural Background In October 2016 Backpage CEO Carl Ferrer was arrested on felony charges of pimping a minor, pimping, and conspiracy to commit pimping. The court dismissed the complaint on the basis of immunity for…
Taina Bien-Aimé on Backpage and CDA 230 Backpage and the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act of 2017 Anti-trafficking Coalition Rebuttal to Tech Industry About Taina Bien-Aimé @tainabienaime / @CATWIntl Taina Bien-Aimé has over two decades of experience defending the rights of women and girls at the national and global level. She is currently the Executive Director of…
Senate Committee Releases Report Condemning Backpage Last week, the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations held a hearing to discuss the findings of its report titled “Backpage.com’s Knowing Facilitation of Online Sex Trafficking.” The report found that: Backpage knowingly covered up evidence of criminal activity by systematically editing its so-called adult ads. Backpage knows that it facilitates prostitution…
On Tuesday, California Attorney General Kamala Harris will be sworn in as the state’s new U.S. Senator. Before leaving, however, she continued her war against Backpages.com and its executives over the publication of prostitution ads. As outlined previously, Backpage has been under increased scrutiny from Congressional investigators and state attorney generals, leading to the…
We have previously reported about Backpage executives being arrested and charged on felony charges of pimping a minor, pimping, and conspiracy to commit pimping by California Attorney General (and Senator-elect) Kamala Harris and Backpage’s effort to get the claim dismissed under CDA Section 230. Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Michael Bowman issued a tentative ruling in…
Lawyers for the Backpage executives charged with pimping a minor, pimping, and conspiracy to commit pimping demanded that charges be dismissed on the grounds that the prosecution violates the First Amendment and is preempted by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. First Amendment Davis Wright Tremaine’s letter to Attorney General Harris contended that: The State cannot…
Backpage CEO Carl Ferrer was arrested by Texas authorities on a California warrant upon arrival at Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Airport on felony charges of pimping a minor, pimping, and conspiracy to commit pimping. Authorities also raised Backpage’s Dallas headquarters. The complaint lists five instances of minors (four who were under 16) allegedly paying to advertise…
The Subcommittee Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations began its bipartisan investigation of human trafficking on the Internet in April 2015. The Subcommittee explains that With estimated annual revenues of more than $150 million, Backpage is a market leader in commercial sex advertising and has been linked to hundreds of reported cases of sex trafficking, including the…
Zappos Browsewrap Agreement Unenforceable Zappos had sought to block a class action lawsuit stemming from its data breach earlier this year by reliance on terms and conditions requiring arbitration of such claims and prohibiting class actions. The problem is, however, is that Zappos’ terms and conditions are what is known as a “Browsewrap Agreement” in…
Cyber Report 