Online Service Providers as Human Rights Arbiters

Rikke Frank Jørgensen; Anja Møller Pedersen

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-47852-4_10

Online Service Providers as Human Rights Arbiters

Rikke Frank Jørgensen, Anja Møller Pedersen

Abstract

Within the EU, governments increasingly encourage online service providers to engage in co- and self-regulatory measures to prevent harmful and illegal content in the online sphere. As part of this tendency, governments shape schemes of liability for third-party content around the online service providers (intermediaries), giving them strong incentives to block, filter or take down content upon notification or request from public authorities in order to avoid liability. Concern has been raised, that the intermediaries are being used to implement public policy with limited oversight and accountability with severe implications on human rights. Drawing on case-studies of three EU directives, including the E-commerce directive, the chapter illustrates how measures of blocking, filtering, and take down of content in co- and self-regulatory frameworks interfere with the human rights standards related to freedom of expression and information. It further discusses current approaches towards human rights responsibilities of private actors, with a particular focus on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The chapter concludes that self-regulatory frameworks are insufficient to counter the human rights challenges related to the involvement in online content regulation of intermediaries, who play a crucial role for online public participation.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	The Responsibilities of Online Service Providers
Editors	Mariarosaria Taddeo, Luciano Floridi
Number of pages	21
Publisher	Springer
Publication date	2017
Pages	179-199
Chapter	10
ISBN (Print)	978-3-319-47851-7
ISBN (Electronic)	978-3-319-47852-4
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47852-4_10
Publication status	Published - 2017
Externally published	Yes

Series	Law, Governance and Technology Series
Volume	31
ISSN	2352-1902

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Online Service Providers as Human Rights Arbiters. / Jørgensen, Rikke Frank; Pedersen, Anja Møller.
The Responsibilities of Online Service Providers. ed. / Mariarosaria Taddeo; Luciano Floridi. Springer, 2017. p. 179-199 (Law, Governance and Technology Series, Vol. 31).

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Book chapter › Research › peer-review

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AB - Within the EU, governments increasingly encourage online service providers to engage in co- and self-regulatory measures to prevent harmful and illegal content in the online sphere. As part of this tendency, governments shape schemes of liability for third-party content around the online service providers (intermediaries), giving them strong incentives to block, filter or take down content upon notification or request from public authorities in order to avoid liability. Concern has been raised, that the intermediaries are being used to implement public policy with limited oversight and accountability with severe implications on human rights. Drawing on case-studies of three EU directives, including the E-commerce directive, the chapter illustrates how measures of blocking, filtering, and take down of content in co- and self-regulatory frameworks interfere with the human rights standards related to freedom of expression and information. It further discusses current approaches towards human rights responsibilities of private actors, with a particular focus on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The chapter concludes that self-regulatory frameworks are insufficient to counter the human rights challenges related to the involvement in online content regulation of intermediaries, who play a crucial role for online public participation.

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Online Service Providers as Human Rights Arbiters

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