{"id":368899,"date":"2023-07-18T16:09:08","date_gmt":"2023-07-18T21:09:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-law\/litigation\/filing-a-lawsuit\/can-i-sue-an-online-answer-forum.html"},"modified":"2023-07-18T16:23:45","modified_gmt":"2023-07-18T21:23:45","slug":"can-i-sue-an-online-answer-forum","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/litigation\/filing-a-lawsuit\/can-i-sue-an-online-answer-forum.html","title":{"rendered":"Can I Sue an Online Answer Forum?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Can I Sue an Online Answer Forum?<\/h1>\n
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\n By Robert Rafii, Esq.<\/a> | Legally reviewed by Steven Ellison, Esq.<\/a>\n | Last reviewed\n
\n \n <\/i>\n Legally Reviewed\n <\/summary>\n\n
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This article has been written and reviewed for legal accuracy, clarity, and style by FindLaw\u2019s team of legal writers and attorneys<\/a> and in accordance with our editorial standards<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/details>\n\n

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The last updated date refers to the last time this article was reviewed by FindLaw or one of our contributing authors<\/a>. We make every effort to keep our articles updated. For information regarding a specific legal issue affecting you, please contact an attorney in your area<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/details>\n<\/section>\n

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You generally can’t sue an online answer forum for user-generated content due to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which protects platforms from liability for content posted by others. But, you may be able to sue if the platform itself created the harmful content, violated product liability or intellectual property laws, or engaged in anti-competitive behavior. <\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n

Like how you can’t sue review websites for bad reviews posted by their users, you also can’t sue online answer forums (in most scenarios).<\/p>\n

That’s because of the Communications Decency Act of 1996<\/a> (CDA), also known as Title V of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Section 230 of the CDA says that \u201cno provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider."<\/p>\n

To put it simply, you can’t shoot the messenger. Federal law says providers, such as online answer forums and social media sites, are merely innocent messengers. That includes platforms like:<\/p>\n