Social Links: Bills that would take a bite out of §230; court opinion on social media & ethics; using evidence on social media to determine unemployment benefits eligibility
- A federal appeals court in Miami held that a judge needn’t necessarily recuse herself from a case being argued by a lawyer with whom the judge is merely Facebook “friends.” Bills in both houses of Congress propose amending Section 230 of the Communications Decency... ›
Now Available: The April Issue of Our Socially Aware Newsletter
By: Aaron P. Rubin
The latest issue of our Socially Aware newsletter is now available here. In this edition, we explore the threat to U.S. jobs posed by rapid advances in emerging technologies; we examine a Federal Trade Commission report on how companies engaging in cross-device tracking can stay on... ›Now Available: The February Issue of Our Socially Aware Newsletter
By: Aaron P. Rubin
The latest issue of our Socially Aware newsletter is now available here. In this edition,we examine a spate of court decisions that appear to rein in the historically broad scope of the Communications Decency Act’s Section 230 safe harbor for website operators; we outline... ›Snapchat Clocks Section 230 Win in Speed Filter Case
By: Aaron P. Rubin
We have been monitoring a trend of cases narrowing the immunity provided to website operators under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA). A recent decision by a state court in Georgia, however, demonstrates that Section 230 continues to be applied expansively in... ›The Decline and Fall of Section 230?
By: Aaron P. Rubin
2016 has been a tough year for a lot of reasons, most of which are outside the scope of this blog (though if you’d like to hear our thoughts about Bowie, Prince or Leonard Cohen, feel free to drop us a line). But one... ›In a Rough Year for CDA Section 230, Manchanda v. Google Provides Comfort to Website Operators
By: Aaron P. Rubin
As we noted in our recent post on the Ninth Circuit case Kimzey v. Yelp! Inc. , in the right circumstances, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA) still provides robust protection against liability for website operators despite the unusually large number of... ›Yelp Case Shows CDA §230 Still Has Teeth
By: Aaron P. Rubin
2016 has been a challenging year for Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA) and the website operators who depend on it for protection against liability stemming from user-generated content. An unusually large number of cases this year have resulted in decisions holding... ›Controversial California Court Decision Significantly Narrows a Crucial Liability Safe Harbor for Website Operators
A recent California court decision involving Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA) is creating considerable concern among social media companies and other website operators. As we’ve discussed in past blog posts , CDA Section 230 has played an essential role in the... ›Social Links—Twitter loosens up; case against Google stands; should millennials be in charge of big social media campaigns?
By: Aaron P. Rubin
Here’s how Twitter is loosening up its 140-character limit. The federal government will now check the social media history of prospective employees before granting them security clearance. One expert says C-level executives shouldn’t entrust millennials with their companies’ social media feeds. Federal court refuses... ›How to Protect Your Company’s Social Media Currency
By: Aaron P. Rubin
Today’s companies compete not only for dollars but also for likes, followers, views, tweets, comments and shares. “Social currency,” as some researchers call it , is becoming increasingly important and companies are investing heavily in building their social media fan bases. In some cases,... ›