HOUSTON – A Texas woman has opened a new channel in the revenge-porn debate by suing social media giant Facebook over images posted by a former boyfriend. She seeks $123 million, or 10 cents per registered Facebook user.
In documents filed with the court July 25, Meryem Ali claims to have suffered “significant trauma, extreme humiliation, extreme embarrassment, severe emotional disturbances and severe mental and physical suffering” after ex-boyfriend Adeel Shah Khan posted nude images to what Ali characterized as an imposter Facebook page bearing her name and personal information. The images allegedly were composites created by superimposing Ali’s face onto another woman’s naked body. According to the lawsuit, one of the images depicted a “graphic, pornographic-like” pose.
Ali said she was alerted to the fake page by relatives whom the actual owner of the page asked to “friend.” Ali was able to remove the page only after the Houston Police Department interceded on her behalf.
Central to her lawsuit is what Ali calls “the frailties and failures of [Facebook’s] falsely advertised and false-promoted privacy mechanisms.”
Legal experts are far from sure Ali will prevail in court. Georgetown Law Professor Rebecca Tushnet indicated Facebook is protected by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act’s “safe harbor” provisions, which remove most liability for user-generated content. Attorney Richard B. Newman, who specializes in internet law, said if Ali can prove Facebook acted maliciously in allowing the allegedly fake page to stand, she may have a claim despite the DMCA — but that scenario is highly unlikely.
In addition, Ali faces a certain amount of difficulty because Texas is not among the states that have outlawed revenge porn. To date, only 10 U.S. states have enacted legislation criminalizing intentional posting of material meant to shame or embarrass others: Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin. Texas is among 27 others where such legislation is pending.
