/ 29 November 2021

Cracking down on the trolls

Image source: Getty
Image source: Getty

Social media platforms including Facebook and Twitter will face the same legal liabilities as mainstream publishers for defamatory comments posted on their platforms if they do not reveal the identity of the users responsible. PM Scott Morrison yesterday said new Social Media Anti-Trolling legislation would give you 2 avenues if you’ve been trolled and defamed. First, the platforms would have a standardised complaints system to remove defamatory remarks and identify trolls with their consent. And second, if consent isn’t given, a new Federal Court order would require the social media companies to hand it over so the targets of yucky posts can launch a defamation case. Attorney-General Michaelia Cash said the legislation also means “everyday Australians and Australian organisations with a social media page” can’t be held liable for any defamatory comments. That follows the Voller High Court case, which said they could be held responsible as the ‘publishers’ of defamatory comments made by others. Big Aussie media organisations said it was a move they welcomed.

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