The eSafety commissioner of Australia has halted a lawsuit in the Federal Court against X, previously known as Twitter, that aimed to eradicate or restrict access to a stabbing video hosted on the platform.
The commissioner successfully obtained a temporary block on specific X URLs before the Court reversed the decision.
Prior to this, the commissioner had expressed interest in finding alternative methods to prevent Australians from viewing the video on X, such as restricting access via VPNs.
Nevertheless, the commissioner announced today the complete discontinuation of the Federal Court action.
Instead, the legality of the content removal notice issued to X will now be solely tested through the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).
In a statement, eSafety commissioner Julie Inman Grant articulated that all actions against X would be “consolidated” into a unified AAT case.
“After balancing various factors, including legal battles across multiple cases, I have determined that this approach is likely to yield the most beneficial result for the online safety of all Australians, particularly children,” she stated.
“We are now looking forward to a comprehensive and impartial review of my decision to issue a removal notice to X Corp by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.”
The commissioner reiterated her support for the measures taken in attempting to block or remove access to the video.
She contended that “the majority of Australians agree that this type of graphic content should not be on traditional television, raising the obvious question of why it should be freely distributed and accessible online around the clock to anyone.”
The commissioner asserted that the Federal Court case had been valuable in assessing her “innovative” authorities.
“Through this procedure, eSecurity has also embraced the chance to test its innovative regulatory powers – as outlined in Australia’s Online Safety Act – to safeguard Australians from online dangers,” she remarked.
“eSecurity remains dedicated to implementing the full suite of provisions under the Online Safety Act to ensure accountability from all technology companies, without bias.
“We are steadfast in this commitment.”
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