Website Owner Not Liable For Third-Party Posts
Many businesses and individuals are concerned about potential liability from material third-parties might post on the company website. The law on this topic just became a little more clear.
The 7th Circuit just ruled that the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (CDA) immunizes craigslist from discriminatory housing ads posted on its website.
In plain English
The Fair Housing Act basically prohibits discrimination in the housing market. Apparently some of the housing posts on craigslist were deemed discriminatory.
But the CDA specifically exempts internet service providers from liability for the content of third parties. So craigslist claimed it was immune from the discrimination claims. The court agreed.
Applied to you
Generally speaking, you should not have illegal material on your website. But laws like the CDA help ensure that you are not responsible for content posted by third parties.
Unfortunately, many areas of internet law are vastly unsettled. That means you should still exercise care and caution with your websites, especially regarding any content submitted by your visitors. Hopefully more decisions like this one will further clarify that website owners do not bear ultimate responsibility for third-party content.
Photo by J.Salmoral
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