US Supreme Court reexamines landmark law protecting Google

The US Supreme Court will examine the effects of a law known as Section 230, which has protected tech companies from lawsuits related to their platforms’ content since 1996, to a case related to the November 2015 attacks in Paris.

The top court in the U.S. will continue its consideration of a very similar case, but this time asking if platforms should be subject to anti-terrorism laws.

The relatives of Nohemi Gonzalez, one of the 130 victims of the attacks in the French capital, blamed Google-owned YouTube for having recommended videos from the jihadist group to users, helping along the call to violence.

According to the relatives, Google assisted ISIS in spreading its message and thus providing material support by recommending the terrorist’s videos to users.

The complaint was dismissed by the federal courts on behalf of a law,

Section 230 states that in the US internet companies cannot be considered publishers and have legal immunity for the content posted on their platforms.

But the complainants insist that the highly complex recommendation systems perfected by big platforms fall out of the scope of Section 230.

The nine justices will examine and their ruling, expected by June 30, could have huge repercussions for the future of the internet.