Facebook Removes Paedophile Page After Court Order

Facebook has taken down a page in Northern Ireland that was set up to monitor paedophiles, following an order from the High Court.

The social network was given 72 hours to act, but has done so immediately, after a convicted sex offender won a case in which he claimed harassment. The unnamed man spent six years in jail for a slew of child sex offences.

Once he came out of prison, he found the page along with pictures on him and threats directed towards him. He also claimed misuse of private information, and a breach of his right to privacy and freedom from inhuman or degrading treatment, according to the BBC.

Punished enough?

The judge ruled the man had already been punished enough by the justice system. Mr Justice McCloskey said: “Society has dealt with the plaintiff in accordance with the rule of law.”

“He has been punished by incarceration and he is subject to substantial daily restrictions on his lifestyle.”

Facebook said it was going to apply with the court order for now. “Facebook respects local laws. Consistent with the court order, the page in question is currently unavailable. We will be studying the text of the order before deciding on next steps,” a spokesperson said.

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