The German Supreme Court ruled that Facebook acted illegally, removing racist posts from the platform and blocking their authors’ accounts. The court considered that the largest social network did not notify users in advance and did not explain the reasons for removing the materials published by them.
This decision of the German court will surely provoke a heated discussion. However, the verdict in favor of the anonymous plaintiff is also surprising because the publications in question clearly violate Facebook’s rules prohibiting the publication of hateful comments and materials. Moreover, German law prohibits the publication of content that could destabilize the situation and calls for violence against minority groups.
In addition, the Karlsruhe court ruling states that Facebook’s internal rules regarding information posted on the social network, which relates to the deletion of messages and blocking of accounts for violating platform rules, “have no legal effect.” This position is explained by the fact that Facebook is not obliged to notify users about the deletion of their posts and blocking their accounts.
Facebook, for its part, has expressed its willingness to reconsider its decision on these posts. However, according to recent reports, they are associated with hateful statements about Muslims living in Germany.
