Brazil Supreme Court Makes Social Media Firms Liable for Illegal User Posts

Brazil’s Supreme Court ruled 8–3 on 26 June that social-media and other digital-platform operators can be held civilly liable for illegal content posted by users if they fail to remove it after being formally notified, overturning a central protection the industry has relied on for more than a decade.

The majority declared partially unconstitutional Article 19 of the 2014 Marco Civil da Internet, which had limited liability to situations in which a judge ordered takedown. Under the new standard, platforms remain shielded in defamation disputes—where a court order is still required—but assume direct responsibility in cases involving crimes such as hate speech, racism, terrorism, attacks on democracy, child exploitation and the use of fake accounts. The justices also ordered companies to maintain a legal representative in Brazil, publish annual transparency reports and adopt due-process channels for complaints.

The decision applies to all courts nationwide until Congress enacts specific legislation, giving Brazil one of the world’s toughest regimes for online speech. The federal solicitor-general’s office (AGU) hailed the ruling as a “civilizational milestone,” while Google and Meta warned it could chill legitimate expression and raise compliance costs. With roughly 150 million Brazilians on WhatsApp alone, industry analysts expect platforms to expand moderation teams and face higher legal exposure as they adapt to the new liability framework.