Read on Twitter
Child sexual abuse material is not a bug in the current online system. It is a feature. The dominant approach to online content is *premised* on not holding service providers responsible for CSAM.
This approach is shaped by section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, passed in 1997 in the United States to indemnify internet service providers from liability for third-party content.
Shortly after the passage of s230, the US mother of a CSAM victim tried to sue AOL. Her son had been abused at 11 by an offender who advertised the abuse images and video of via AOL chat . The mother notified AOL but they didn't ban the offender from their services.
In 1997, the mother alleged that AOL had violated child pornography laws and tried to sue AOL for negligence. The claims were dismissed due to s230. The decision as affirmed in 1998. In 2001, the Florida Supreme Court issued a 4-3 ruling in favour of AOL.
However the dissent is telling. This is precisely the argument now being levied against Pornhub but the problem was apparent, at least to this justice, twenty years ago.
This is an early s230 case. If the court had been swayed by Lewis’ argument, then internet regulation would now look very different. Allowing ISPs to circulate CSAM without being responsible for it, and even profiting from it, is foundational to the modern internet.
There is significant momentum in the States to reform s230 which I support 100%. Defenders of s230 refuse to acknowledge the scale of damage and suffering caused by CSAM, and position content regulation as a human rights violation more egregious than mass child exploitation.
The status quo has been premised on the silencing & shaming of CSAM survivors, who are now speaking out in increasing numbers. They do so at considerable risk, including stalking & harassment from CSAM consumers, & gaslighting from tech companies who accuse them of exaggeration.
The reason why tech companies are so reluctant to proactively and comprehensively address CSAM is *because* it is the original sin of the modern internet, swept under the carpet until there was so much it couldn't be ignored.
