The father of one of the victims in the Paris attacks back in November 2015 has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Northern California, suing Facebook, Twitter, and Google in relation to the attacks. Reynaldo Gonzalez’s daughter, Nohemi Gonzalez, was one of the victims of the Paris attacks, and the lawsuit alleges that the three big social media websites have allowed the Islamic State to use their networks to recruit members, spread propaganda, and raise funds for their organization.
According to the International Business Times (IBT), ISIS has been using Facebook to recruit members, while ISIS supporters have tweeted photos of dead soldiers, and Google owned YouTube has been used to host beheading videos. This isn’t the first time a social media site has been sued in relation to the Paris attacks, as a similar lawsuit was brought against Twitter in January alleging the same thing.
Facebook, Twitter and Google have all responded to the lawsuit, with both Facebook and Twitter stressing that the lawsuit is without merit, and all three companies indicated that they work aggressively and swiftly to remove terrorist related content.
Facebook: “We extend our deepest sympathy to those affected by terror attacks. There is no place for terrorists or content that promotes or supports terrorism on Facebook, and we work aggressively to remove such content as soon as we become aware of it. Anyone can report terrorist accounts or content to us, and our global team responds to these reports quickly around the clock. If we see evidence of a threat of imminent harm or a terror attack, we reach out to law enforcement. This lawsuit is without merit and we will defend ourselves.”
Twitter: “Twitter strongly condemns the ongoing acts of violence for which ISIS claims credit, and our sympathies go out to those impacted by these acts of terror. We have partnered with others in industry, NGOs and governments to find better ways to combat the online manifestations of the larger societal problem at the core of violent extremism. As we stated earlier this year, violent threats and the promotion of terrorism deserve no place on Twitter and, like other social networks, our rules make that clear. We have teams around the world actively investigating reports of rule violations, identifying violating conduct, and working with law enforcement entities when appropriate. We believe this lawsuit is without merit.”
Google: “Our hearts go out to the victims of terrorism and their families everywhere. While we cannot comment on pending litigation, YouTube has a strong track record of taking swift action against terrorist content. We have clear policies prohibiting terrorist recruitment and content intending to incite violence and quickly remove videos violating these policies when flagged by our users. We also terminate accounts run by terrorist organizations or those that repeatedly violate our policies.”
What do you think about the lawsuits against social media sites in relation to terrorist attacks? Let us know in the comments below, or on Google+, Twitter, or Facebook.
[button link=”http://www.ibtimes.com/isis-propaganda-lawsuit-twitter-google-facebook-sued-father-paris-attack-victim-2382522″ icon=”fa-external-link” side=”left” target=”blank” color=”285b5e” textcolor=”ffffff”]Source: International Business Times[/button]
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