Brazil Supreme Court Expands Social Media Liability, Threatening Free Expression

The Supreme Court of Brazil has taken a troubling step by approving an expansion of social media platforms’ legal responsibility for third-party content deemed illegal, even without a court order. Eight out of eleven justices ruled that companies can be held liable if they fail to remove such content upon receiving an extrajudicial notice from offended parties. This ruling lowers the bar significantly for content removal demands and effectively forces platforms into acting as censors based on subjective notifications rather than due judicial process. Content flagged includes serious offenses like child pornography and terrorism references, but also extends to "anti-democratic...