Steve Wozniak, the co-founder of Apple, has emerged victorious in his legal battle against YouTube regarding the use of manipulated videos featuring his likeness in a Bitcoin scam that occurred in 2020. The recent ruling by an appeals court in San Jose overturned a previous judgment that had cleared YouTube of any responsibility.
According to Bloomberg, the appeals court determined that YouTube could not rely on a controversial communications law to absolve itself of liability in a fraudulent scheme that exploited Wozniak’s popularity through a doctored video. This verdict allows Wozniak to proceed with his lawsuit against the video streaming platform and could potentially lead to a revision of the federal law that shields platforms like YouTube from liability associated with the content posted on their platforms.
In 2020, Wozniak, along with 17 other individuals including Bill Gates, Elon Musk, and Michael Dell, filed a lawsuit against YouTube and its parent company, Google, after manipulated videos promoting a fake scam gained widespread attention on the platform. These videos featured added text and images promising free Bitcoin (BTC) and encouraged viewers to send Bitcoin to a specific address in order to double their money.
The recent ruling by the appeals court is seen as a significant victory for Wozniak and others involved in the lawsuit. This comes after a judge in Santa Clara County Superior Court ruled in 2022 that the companies were protected from liability under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
The appeals court judges noted that popular YouTube channels are often hacked to promote scams. They held Google and YouTube accountable for their role in the scam by providing verification badges to compromised channels. Additionally, the platform failed to remove these badges when the channels began posting scam videos, and one channel even received a verification badge during the scam itself. As a result, the appeals court concluded that companies may not be shielded by Section 230 immunity if they contributed to the scam through their verification process.
Joe Cotchett, Wozniak’s attorney, emphasized that the verdict underscores the need for social media platforms like Google and YouTube to take responsibility for their actions and not rely on Section 230 as a complete shield for their conduct.
In other news, Fidelity has made amendments to its proposal for a spot Ethereum ETF to include staking, Ether ETFs face opposition in the Senate, Craig Wright is confirmed not to be Satoshi Nakamoto, and Dencun has gone live. This is the latest update in Hodler’s Digest for March 10–16.