Facebook, Twitter, Google sued by San Bernardino victims’ families

The families of victims of San Bernardino terror shootout which took place in December 2015, have sued social media giants Facebook, Twitter and Google, claiming that the companies permitted the militant Islamic State (IS) to flourish on social media.

The lawsuit was filed by the relatives of the victims who were killed in the deadly shootout. In the complaint they assert that by allowing IS militants to spread propaganda freely on social media, the three companies provided ‘material support’ to the group which enables attack such as the one in San Bernardino.

“For years defendants have knowingly and recklessly provided the terrorist group ISIS with accounts to use its social networks as a tool for spreading extremist propaganda, raising funds and attracting new recruits,” family members of Sierra Clayborn, Tin Nguyen and Nicholas Thalasinos charge in the 32-page complaint, which was filed in US District Court in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

“Without defendants Twitter, Facebook and Google (YouTube), the explosive growth of ISIS over the last few years into the most feared terrorist group in the world would not have been possible,” the complaint said.

When three companies were reached for a comment, Twitter and Google declined to give any whereas representatives of Facebook could not be reached.

This is not the first time that such a lawsuit has been filed. In the past, victims of terror attacks have filed similar lawsuits but these companies are largely protected by laws which state that they are not responsible for the content which is posted by users.

On December 2, 2015, Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, of Pakistani origin opened fire on a holiday gathering of Farook’s co-workers at a government building in San Bernardino, killing 14 people and wounding 22 others. The couple was inspired by Islamic militants.

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=54844

Posted by fatimaarshad on May 5 2017. Filed under Latest News, World. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.