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