Durbin Statement on Supreme Court Ruling in Gonzalez V. Google

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement regarding the Supreme Court’s ruling in Gonzalez v. Google:

“Today’s ruling in Gonzalez v. Google is disappointing but unsurprising. The Justices passed on their chance to clarify that Section 230 is not a get-out-of-jail-free card for online platforms when they cause harm.

“Enough is enough. Big Tech has woefully failed to regulate itself. Congress must step in, reform Section 230, and remove platforms’ blanket immunity from liability. We’ve already advanced legislation in the Senate Judiciary Committee to help protect kids against the dangers of online platforms, and we will keep holding Big Tech accountable for its failures.”

As Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Durbin is committed to holding Big Tech accountable for the harms it’s caused – especially for children. This month, the Committee has advancedfour bipartisan bills to the full Senate as part of the Stopping the Exploitation of Kids Online legislative package:

• Durbin’s STOP CSAM Actsupports victims and increases accountability and transparency for online platforms;
• The EARN IT Act creates targeted exceptions to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 to remove blanket immunity from civil and criminal liability under child sexual abuse material laws and establishes a National Commission on Online Child Sexual Exploitation Prevention;
• The SHIELD Act ensures that federal prosecutors have appropriate and effective tools to address serious privacy violations; and
• The Project Safe Childhood Act modernizes the investigation and prosecution of online child exploitation crimes.

Additionally, Durbin has introduced legislation to strengthen online privacy protections for children when websites collect their personally identifiable information. Earlier this year, he introduced the Clean Slate for Kids Online Act, legislation that would give every American an enforceable legal right to demand that internet companies delete all personal information that was collected from or about the person when he or she was a child under age 13.   

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