The US technology group Google is suing an extension of the German law against hate speech on the Internet.
This violates the privacy of users, argued the world’s largest search engine provider, which also includes the video portal YouTube , on Tuesday. The lawsuit against the Federal Ministry of Justice was submitted to the Cologne Administrative Court. Above all, Google wants to take action against the obligation to pass on user data to authorities, which has to take place before a criminal offense is determined.
The so-called Network Enforcement Act (NetzDG), which came into force in 2018, provides that criminal content from social media such as Facebook , Twitter or YouTube must be deleted quickly and consistently, and it plays a central role in dealing with hate speech on the Internet – particularly important in view of the federal elections in this year. The law is in contradiction to the German constitution and European laws, wrote YouTube manager Sabine Frank in a blog post. In May, among other things, the reporting obligations and fines under the NetzDG were expanded.
The shares of Google parent Alphabet are listed on Tuesday in NASDAQ trading at times 0.66 percent lower at 2,774.50 US dollars.
