Congress has begun debating the TAKE IT DOWN Act (S. 146), a bill that seeks to speed up the removal of a troubling type of online content: non-consensual intimate imagery, or NCII. In recent years, c...
Read Full Article »The TAKE IT DOWN Act: A Flawed Attempt to Protect Victims That Will Lead to Censorship
Discussion Points
- Is the TAKE IT DOWN Act a necessary step to protect victims of non-consensual intimate imagery, or does it pose a threat to free speech and user privacy?
- How can the bill's provisions be balanced to address concerns around online content removal while minimizing the risk of censorship and overreach?
- What exemptions or safeguards should be included in the bill to protect encrypted services and prevent them from being forced to compromise user privacy?
Summary
The TAKE IT DOWN Act has raised concerns about its potential to speed up the removal of non-consensual intimate imagery online, but at the cost of threatening free expression and user privacy. The bill's notice-and-takedown system could lead to overreach and censorship, particularly with broad definitions and lack of safeguards.
Exemptions for encrypted services are also unclear, posing a threat to private conversations and end-to-end encryption. Critics argue that the bill does not adequately address the problem it claims to solve and would instead create a far broader internet censorship regime than existing laws like the DMCA.