Nowadays, pretty much anyone with internet access can create accounts and become active on social media platforms, and this also applies to terrorist organizations. As far as Twitter is concerned, it has recently become the main focus of a lawsuit filed by a woman whose husband was killed during an attack on a police training center in Jordan. Apparently, the woman is suing Twitter for allowing ISIS members to create accounts and spread their ideology on the platform, but even though the company’s representatives have stated that they sympathise with her unfortunate situation, they believe that the lawsuit itself is uncalled for.
It’s common knowledge among legal representatives that social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are protected by the law in these scenarios, as they cannot be held responsible for the actions of their users. The woman’s explanation for filing the lawsuit can be found in the court papers, in which she issued the following statement:
“…for years, Twitter has knowingly permitted the terrorist group ISIS to use its social network as a tool for spreading extremist propaganda, raising funds and attracting new recruits. This material support has been instrumental to the rise of ISIS and has enabled it to carry out numerous terrorist attacks.”
It’s true that Twitter doesn’t go out of its way to search for pro-ISIS accounts and delete them, but the company hasn’t turned a blind eye to what’s happening on its platform. Accounts that were being used to incite violence were deleted in the past, as Twitter’s stance against violent threats and the promotion of terrorism has been clear for quite some time now.
