An important provision of the new Network Enforcement Act (NetzDG) to combat criminal offenses and hate speech on the Internet will not be able to be applied in part from the start on February 1 – as can be seen from a statement by the Federal Ministry of Justice. The question at stake is whether Google, the Facebook group Meta and other online platforms will have to deliver user data from suspected criminals to the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) on a large scale in the future.
A spokesman for the Federal Ministry of Justice said on Monday that the companies Google, Meta and Twitter had sought legal protection against the Network Enforcement Act before the Cologne Administrative Court. “In order to enable the court to make an appropriate decision,” a so-called standstill agreement was issued, which, however, only applies to these two companies.
Sanctions suspended for the time being
This means that Google and the Facebook group Meta do not have to fear any sanctions for the time being. In contrast to criminal law, such a promise is possible here because it is a legal obligation that is treated as an administrative offence. The US company has filed a lawsuit against the new NetzDG before the administrative court in Cologne, said a court spokesman, thereby confirming a report by the news magazine The mirror.
Like Meta and Google, Twitter has also initiated an urgent procedure. With a lawsuit before the administrative court in Cologne, the short message service Twitter had also directed itself against the amendment to the NetzDG that was coming into force.
New central office to speed up investigations
With the new central office – against which the lawsuit is also directed – the Federal Ministry of Justice wants to find criminals in social networks more quickly. A Twitter spokesperson told the mirror the concern that the law provides for a significant encroachment on the fundamental rights of citizens. The lawsuit concerns loudly [i]mirror[i]-Information §3 a and b of the NetzDG. The NetzDG is intended to take action against hatred and hate speech, criminal false news and right-wing extremism.
TikTok also does not want to release any data
Just recently, TikTok also filed a lawsuit with the administrative court in Cologne to defend itself against paragraph 3a. The short video platform also does not want to release any data to the BKA. In addition, Telegram does not want to submit to the NetzDG either. Telegram did not react to two procedures by the Federal Office of Justice.
(mack)