4chan Refuses To Pay UK Online Safety Act Fines (bbc.com)
- Reference: 0178829636
- News link: https://news.slashdot.org/story/25/08/22/2029253/4chan-refuses-to-pay-uk-online-safety-act-fines
- Source link: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq68j5g2nr1o
> A lawyer representing the online message board 4chan says it [1]won't pay a proposed fine by the UK's media regulator as it enforces the Online Safety Act. According to Preston Byrne, managing partner of law firm Byrne & Storm, Ofcom has provisionally decided to impose a 20,000-pound fine "with daily penalties thereafter" for as long as the site fails to comply with its request. "Ofcom's notices create no legal obligations in the United States," he told the BBC, adding he believed the regulator's investigation was part of an "illegal campaign of harassment" against US tech firms.
>
> "4chan has broken no laws in the United States -- my client will not pay any penalty," Mr Byrne said. Ofcom began investigating 4chan over whether it was complying with its obligations under the UK's Online Safety Act. Then in August, it said it had issued 4chan with "a provisional notice of contravention" for failing to comply with two requests for information. Ofcom said its investigation would examine whether the message board was complying with the act, including requirements to protect its users from illegal content.
"American businesses do not surrender their First Amendment rights because a foreign bureaucrat sends them an email," law firms Byrne & Storm and Coleman Law wrote. "Under settled principles of US law, American courts will not enforce foreign penal fines or censorship codes. If necessary, we will seek appropriate relief in US federal court to confirm these principles."
The statement calls on the Trump administration to intervene and protect American businesses from "extraterritorial censorship mandates."
[1] https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq68j5g2nr1o
What's the issue here? (Score:3)
If the site runs afoul of some British law, why don't they just block the website? Not even China hassles individual websites with fines, they just put them on the outside of the Great Firewall and go about their business. Just tell the Brits that they're not an empire anymore and can kindly fuck off.
Re: (Score:2)
Because Britain is supposed to be a free country so blocking a website like that would look really really bad in public. So they want to use threats instead.
Honestly they don't need to bother wait a little bit and the right wing will basically shut down 4chan. A huge part of the attraction to that site is all the hentai and that stuff is not going to be legal for much longer. They'll start with the really questionable stuff and then move on to everything else.
You can literally find the project 2025
Re: (Score:2)
Go home, you're drunk.
Re: What's the issue here? (Score:2)
The far left government of the UK is restricting free speech through laws. Our right wing government is over there repeatedly chastising their government for doing so. Therefore 4chan, who the media is always saying is full of pro-gun, anti women, gamergate, red pill, anti-woke assholes is going to get censored? You're high on something. We just spent 4 years with our left wing government colluding with businesses to silence free speech and you have the gall to blame the right wing?
Totally agree, should have added... (Score:2)
I totally agree with this guy. Buy he also should have added....
"I will not comply with your privacy invading law, but... if you guys have a problem without service, feel totally free to ban us and use any and all methods legal in your country to prevent your citizens from going to our website. You totally have the right to build an Iron Curtain or something similar. But you will have to tell your people what you are doing and why."
In unrelated news, I'm sure... (Score:1)
... there has been a data breach at the company that provides the criminal records (if any) used as part of background and employment eligibility checks...
4truth (Score:2)
Stumpy absolutely should take over 4Chan and merge it with his vanity blog. That's where all the memes come from anyway.
Every once in a while- (Score:5, Insightful)
-A great hive of scum and villainy has a use.
Re: Every once in a while- (Score:3)
Surprised to find myself rooting for 4chanâ¦
I don't think it'll do any good (Score:2, Troll)
4chan has been taken over for some time by a pretty large right-wing contingent. There is plenty of other people who aren't like that over there it's a large message board but the guy who runs it is a right-wing extreme rest so it colors the whole site just like how Twitter is basically Nazi City.
So for all the complaining and whining from the owner it's only a matter of time before the right wing comes for him too.
We already have talk of eliminating section 230 of the CDA specifically so that right w
Re: (Score:2)
> 4chan has been taken over for some time by a pretty large right-wing contingent
Then of course the current administration will take their defense. We all know how much republicans value free speech.
As long as it's conservative free speech.
Let me just take this moment to say (Score:2)
Being modded +2 troll on slashdot for a discussion about 4chan is probably the height of my career here.
If I had a jersey they would retire right now.