5 things to know about sexual exploitation in the US, worldwide
4. Attorney warns Section 230 is preventing accountability for sexual exploitation
As the Homeland Security Council reported in June, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received more than 36 million tips concerning suspected online child sexual exploitation and abuse. The number represented a 360% increase in the number of reports received 10 years ago.
Dani Pinter, senior legal counsel for NCOSE and its law center, emphasized that the sexual abuse of children is not a “fringe issue,” warning that the United States is the “primary market” for online child sexual exploitation. The lawyer argued that the reason the issue has become so extreme in the United States is due to broad interpretations of Section 230.
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Pinter said that a week before the summit, a court had dismissed a lawsuit the NCOSE law center filed against a pornography website. The lawyer did not reveal the name of the site, but she said it draws even more traffic than Pornhub.
The NCOSE sued the website for distributing child sex abuse images of NCOSE’s minor client. The group also argued that the site enabled this type of exploitation by placing the tag “toddler” on hardcore pornographic content. The court ruled, however, that the tags used by the site are a “neutral tool” intended to help promote videos.
“Please understand this: While CDA 230 immunity stands, websites will never air on the side of removing harmful content,” Pinter said. “Even if it’s child pornography, and even if they know that.”
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
