Underreporting hate speech complaints: Germany fines Facebook Rs364m

BERLIN: Germany's Federal Office of Justice (BfJ) on Tuesday fined US social media giant Facebook Rs364 million ($2.3 million) for underreporting the number of complaints it had received about illegal content on its platform, German media reported.

The fine was levied for infractions against Germany's internet transparency law known as NetzDG.

The law requires companies like Facebook and Twitter to remove posts that contain hate speech or incite violence within 24 hours or face fines as high as €50 million. Social media companies are also required to file reports on their progress every six months.

Justice Minister Christine Lambrecht accused the company of skewing the extent of such violations by selectively reporting complaints.

Lambrecht said it was exceedingly difficult for a user to complain to Facebook about posts that violate NetzDG. She added that by comparison, it was far easier to complain about posts that violate the site's softer community standards.

But Lambrecht said that Facebook's decision to only tally the NetzDG complaints meant the total number was artificially low.