Obscene Messages

6th

Ok so just wondering what the Admins and users of Boards make of the fact that the first Irish prosecution for posting obscene messages on a social networking site. Please read the whole post before throwing up comments.

Herald AM front page wrote:

Users of social networking sites will need to watch their Ps and Qs after a court handed down the first prosecution for putting offensive messages on one of the most popular pages - bebo.
The first-of-a-kind case was brought under the Post Office Amendment Act - which dates from as far back as 1951 - for sending offensive or indecent material by means of telecommunication.
And the decision could now pave the way for future prosecutions involving those who have abusedor been abused through popular websites.
The judgement comes amid growing concerns over incidences of bullying on networking sites like Facebook, MySpace and bebo.
In this case, a 27 year old man was told to pay his victim - a 16 year old girl - €3,000 or go to jail after posting what a judge describes as "outrageous" messages on the schoolgirl's page. The judge said that the case was the first of its type he had ever had to deal with and said he was outraged by what had been written "for all to see".
He went on to attack the site for acting irresponsibly towards those who use it.
"It's a shocking state of affairs that this rubbish can be put up on sites", he said.

So will this change this for Boards.ie? Should it? We all know that Boards has areas with content that would be deemed offensive and while most know its just a laugh is it dangerous to have it, as this judge says "for all to see"?.

I know some will come in here and get defensive and abusive and then there'll be those who just want to post funny pictures but any chance we could actually discuss this and get some comments from the Admins?

Karoma

I f*cking hate that 6th c*nt

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

6th wrote: »

Ok so just wondering what the Admins and users of Boards make of the fact that the first Irish prosecution for posting obscene messages on a social networking site. Please read the whole post before throwing up comments.



So will this change this for Boards.ie? Should it? We all know that Boards has areas with content that would be deemed offensive and while most know its just a laugh is it dangerous to have it, as this judge says "for all to see"?.

I know some will come in here and get defensive and abusive and then there'll be those who just want to post funny pictures but any chance we could actually discuss this and get some comments from the Admins?

Theer's a difference between "offensive" and "obscene" and one would hope that people aer NOT sending 'obscene' messages to kids/teenagers, even in Thunderdome...

6th

I dont think it would make much of a difference that the person was 16 in this case apart from the fact there is less chance of an adult taking action.

Dyr

the best bit is the judge was using the posts and telegraphs act. :pac:

Yesterday some scumbag walked out of court on a charge of going mental in a stolen car with a pat on the back from the judge because he enrolled in coolmine treatment centre. We need to shoot a few judges.

Cuddlesworth

Bebo was not sued, the man who posted the messages was. So does that mean we as users are liable for what we write on site?

Would that mean that spammers can be prosecuted under Irish law?

6th

Cuddlesworth wrote: »

Bebo was not sued, the man who posted the messages was. So does that mean we as users are liable for what we write on site?

I was glad to see that actually. While he condemned sites for allowing these type of comments the person who made the comments who was charged.

Sherifu

6th wrote: »

I was glad to see that actually. While he condemned sites for allowing these type of comments the person who made the comments who was charged.

As it should be. \o/

6th

So should Boards:

A: Look into areas of the site which may cause trouble.

B: Let people post whatever they like and just stand back.

C: Leave things as they are.

Gordon

C until B divided by 0.B

Maximilian

Well thats why we have Moderators. Sounds to me like that guy sent a picture of Goatse or something. Perhaps it was a pair of ladies with but a single drinking receptacle between them?

Bob the Builder

I dont think anyone in the thunderdome is smart enough to sue anyone else, and when people enter they agree to the fact that they are liable to be insulted. As for the lolocaust, tis' locked already.

6th

nevf wrote: »

they agree to the fact that they are liable to be insulted.

Where do they agree to it? There is no charter etc.

Anyway I'm not picking on the Dome here at all, you get offensive stuff in a few forums and cries of bullying arent rare. Look at the recent Feedback thread where one particular poster (please lets not make this thread about him) said BGRH was a rife with bullying (its not btw).

Bob the Builder

6th wrote: »

Where do they agree to it? There is no charter etc.

Anyway I'm not picking on the Dome here at all, you get offensive stuff in a few forums and cries of bullying arent rare. Look at the recent Feedback thread where one particular poster (please lets not make this thread about him) said BGRH was a rife with bullying (its not btw).

Well those who use the Thunderdome know what it's purpose is, and those who find it offensive should know not to use it.

Regarding your second paragraph, I agree to the extent that you'll find all kinds of everything everywhere on Boards, but IMO, Boards is a much more 'controlled environement' than Bebo, and so shouldn't have to do too much worrying.

With Bebo, there's about 20 people in an office in California trying to control 32 million members. In Boards, there's plenty of mods, cmods, smods and admins, tiered in a hierarchy, that ensures the reasonably smooth running of the forum.

For example, if there really was bullying in the BGRH, it would be TomDunne's job to find it, deal with the post, and if it was offensive enough, to report it to an SMod or Admin, and if unsure, to ask his CMod.

Also, with Bebo or MySpace, the argument can be put forward that "they're only children, let them have at it", whereas with Boards, it's a more varied age group, and so should be at least slightly more maturally behaved.

TequilaMockingBird

nevf wrote: »

Well those who use the Thunderdome know what it's purpose is, and those who find it offensive should know not to use it.

I would prefer if it was private, or a few flashing lights indicating the content before entering. I don't like to think of 15 year olds stumbleing upon it and watching adults behaving like that.

My 2c.

MikeHoncho

Dont think Boards will do anything. The social network site wasnt found liable the person who sent the message was. Just like An Post arent liable if someone sends you a letter calling you a c*nt.

6th

But I think its different because Bebo isnt Irish and isnt subject to irish law (or something) but the guy was. Boards is irish which is why the discussion of some topics are banned here. So is Boards responsible for what we post?

Would love to hear from an Admin on this.

Doctor DooM

TBH I don't think you can really say if this is an issue one way or the other without seeing what was written.

Was it a mere case of cyber bullying? Or did someone photo shop the persons head onto a rude picture?

Or was something illegal posted?

Or a direct threat?

GAAman

Can boards not just put up disclaimers *everywhere* ala with regards to that certain event provider and if there was any question of blame then it is put on the poster themselves either way?

Eoin

6th wrote: »

But I think its different because Bebo isnt Irish and isnt subject to irish law (or something) but the guy was. Boards is irish which is why the discussion of some topics are banned here. So is Boards responsible for what we post?

Would love to hear from an Admin on this.

This was a criminal prosecution, not a libel action. For all we know, Bebo could just have easily been sued for libel as well.

Vexorg

The users are the first line of defence here. Have you ever seen obscene material stay on boards.ie for any length of time once it has been spotted and reported? and most regulars here know exactly what happens here when anything obscene is posted. Its not acceptable and never will be.

I personally think boards.ie is probably one of the safest sites on the interweb.

As I understand it, this was a criminal case as the gardai were involved, it is likely that it was more than just name calling.

6th

Vexorg wrote: »

The users are the first line of defence here. Have you ever seen obscene material stay on boards.ie for any length of time once it has been spotted and reported? and most regulars here know exactly what happens here when anything obscene is posted. Its not acceptable and never will be.

I personally think boards.ie is probably one of the safest sites on the interweb.

As I understand it, this was a criminal case as the gardai were involved, it is likely that it was more than just name calling.

Cheers for the reply Vex. I agree stuff gets removed very quickly and I dont think even the Dome crosses the line when it comes to extreme stuff (a picture od someone taking a sh1T was removed fairly quickly).

I'm not comparing like with like or anything I am just wondering if with this case things will start to change. Posting a pron pic is one thing but is bullying etc going to be the next thing people start thinking more about. By people I dont just mean Boards.

Steve

It's an interesting one and DeV talked about this on the last podcast.

Sites like Bebo aren't actively moderated, they rely on a user reporting something as offensive and then they delete it. This way they claim not to have any responsibility for the content of the site, they merely delete anything that is reported.

Boards is actively moderated through both mods and users reporting posts. The mods / admin then make a decision whether or not to delete it or leave it so, in a way, boards does have a level of responsibility for the content.

As Vexorg said, thanks to the community, any offensive stuff doesn't live long here

DublinWriter

6th wrote: »

I was glad to see that actually. While he condemned sites for allowing these type of comments the person who made the comments who was charged.

Well, the court action was taken against the 27 year old man and not Bebo, and the judge made some 'harsh' comments about Bebo itself.

WhiteWashMan

Vexorg wrote: »

The users are the first line of defence here. Have you ever seen obscene material stay on boards.ie for any length of time once it has been spotted and reported? and most regulars here know exactly what happens here when anything obscene is posted. Its not acceptable and never will be.

I personally think boards.ie is probably one of the safest sites on the interweb.

As I understand it, this was a criminal case as the gardai were involved, it is likely that it was more than just name calling.

you're a poo-head

RoundyMooney

no you

zAbbo

I think there's a little more to the story than the report reads, but I'd rather not speculate.

They certainly knew each other offline...

Lazarus2.0

I guess 'the full story' will filter out at some stage , whether it's accurate or not will most likely be debatable .
It's a big step in the right direction that people might actually be held to be responsible for their actions instead of hiding behind their monitors , IMO .

Kazobel

6th wrote: »

Where do they agree to it? There is no charter etc.

Anyway I'm not picking on the Dome here at all, you get offensive stuff in a few forums and cries of bullying arent rare. Look at the recent Feedback thread where one particular poster (please lets not make this thread about him) said BGRH was a rife with bullying (its not btw).

I totally agree 6th, I think you should all get behind 6th on this especially the guys because she's obviously thought about this alot haven't you 6th? and I'm sure she'd love you all to give her a root out and a pat on the back afterwards for being such a contientious girl and bringing this issue to everyones attention, well done 6th, you go girl!

copacetic

Kazobel wrote: »

I totally agree 6th, I think you should all get behind 6th on this especially the guys because she's obviously thought about this alot haven't you 6th? and I'm sure she'd love you all to give her a root out and a pat on the back afterwards for being such a contientious girl and bringing this issue to everyones attention, well done 6th, you go girl!

agreed, a big hand for 6th, she is doing a bang up job.

Karoma

Arrr,yeah...agreed; a big bang up for 6th, he's doing a good hand.