本文選自The Washington Post 2021-01-18
A Washington nonprofit groupsued Apple in federal court Sunday,demanding that it removeTelegram, a chat and social mediaapp, from its App Store for failingto crack down on violent, extremistconversation in the aftermathof the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S.Capitol.The suit amounts to a pressuretactic to get Apple to act againstTelegram as it already has againstParler, a social media site thatswelled with calls for violence andinsurrection ahead of the Capitolsiege, according to researchers.Apple and Google both have bootedParler from their app storesbecause of its lax moderation policies,and Amazon Web Serviceswithdrew support as well, disablingParler last week on thesame grounds.
周日，華盛頓一家非營利組織向聯邦法院起訴蘋果公司，要求其將聊天和社交媒體應用程式Telegram從其應用程式商店中移除，理由是蘋果公司在1月6日美國國會大廈遇襲後，未能打擊暴力和極端主義對話。這起訴訟相當於一種壓力策略，目的是讓蘋果對Telegram採取行動，就像它已經對Parler採取的行動一樣。據研究人員稱，在國會大廈事件之前，社交媒體網站Parler的暴力和暴動呼聲越來越高。蘋果和谷歌都將Parler從他們的應用商店中移除，因為它寬鬆的審核政策，亞馬遜網絡服務也取消了對Parler的支持，上周出於同樣的原因禁用了Parler。
Telegram offersboth closed, private chat roomsand public groups that anyonewith the app can join.Filing the suit was the Coalitionfor a Safer Web, a nonpartisangroup that advocates for technologiesand policies to removeextremist content from social media,and the coalition’s president,Marc Ginsberg, a former U.S. ambassadorto Morocco. They complainedabout Telegram’s role inhosting white-supremacist, neoNaziand other hateful content,and argued in the lawsuit thatsuch content puts Telegram inviolation of Apple’s terms of servicefor its App Store.A similar suit is plannedagainst Google, said the coalition’slawyer, Keith Altman.「Telegram stands out by itselfas the superspreader [of hatefulspeech], even compared to Parler,」Ginsberg said in an interview.
Telegram既提供封閉的私人聊天室，也提供任何使用該應用程式的人都可以加入的公共群組。提起訴訟的是「更安全網絡聯盟」(Coalition for a Safer Web)和該聯盟主席、前美國駐摩洛哥大使馬克·金斯伯格(Marc Ginsberg)。該聯盟是一個無黨派組織，倡導使用技術和政策，從社交媒體上刪除極端主義內容。他們抱怨Telegram在播放白人至上主義、新納粹主義和其他仇恨內容方面扮演的角色，並在訴訟中辯稱，Telegram的這些內容違反了蘋果應用商店的服務條款。聯盟律師基思·阿爾特曼(Keith Altman)表示，針對谷歌的類似訴訟也在計劃之中。金斯伯格在一次採訪中說:「Telegram作為(仇恨言論的)超級傳播者脫穎而出，甚至可以與Parler相比。」
Ginsberg, who is Jewish, assertsin the suit that Telegram’santi-Semitic content puts him inperil and that his ownership of aniPhone gives him standing to sueApple in federal court to requirethat the company enforce itsterms of service barring hatespeech and incitement to violenceon apps carried by the App Store.The suit, filed in U.S. DistrictCourt for Northern California, allegesnegligent infliction of emotionaldistress and violation of theCalifornia business code andseeks unspecified compensatorydamages and an injunction requiringApple to remove Telegramfrom its App Store.Apple spokesman Fred Sainzdid not immediately respond to arequest for comment. Mike Ravdonikas,a spokesman for Telegram,did not immediately answera request for comment.
金斯堡,一個猶太人,在訴訟中斷言,Telegram的反猶的內容使他處於危險之中,他擁有一部iPhone，因此他有權在聯邦法院起訴蘋果，要求蘋果公司執行其服務條款，禁止在App Store所載應用上發表仇恨言論和煽動暴力。這起訴訟提交給美國北加州地方法院，指控過失造成精神痛苦，違反了《加州商業法典》，並要求賠償未指明的損害賠償金和強制令，要求蘋果將Telegram從其應用程式商店中刪除。蘋果發言人弗雷德·塞恩斯沒有立即回應置評請求。Telegram的發言人Mike Ravdonikas沒有立即回復記者的置評請求。
The siege of the Capitol waswidely discussed and instigatedon social media and messagingapps, including Parler and Telegram.Supporters of PresidentTrump also celebrated the attackas it happened and called formore in the days leading up toWednesday’s inauguration. SuingApple gives the coalition a way toseek action against Telegram,which, as a service based overseas,may be difficult to reachfrom U.S. courts.Telegram, which says it operatesfrom Dubai, was developedby Russian Internet entrepreneurPavel Durov. The app is popularwith people who want to keeptheir communications shieldedfrom autocratic regimes and othersseeking online privacy. Durovhimself has clashed with the Russiangovernment over censorshipand encryption.
包圍國會大廈的事件在社交媒體和通訊應用程式上被廣泛討論和煽動，包括Parler和Telegram。川普總統的支持者也在襲擊發生時慶祝了這一事件，並在周三就職典禮前的幾天呼籲進行更多活動。起訴蘋果給了該聯盟一個尋求對Telegram採取行動的途徑，Telegram作為一項海外服務，可能很難從美國法院獲得。Telegram自稱在杜拜運營，由俄羅斯網際網路企業家帕維爾·杜羅夫(Pavel Durov)開發。這款應用很受那些想讓自己的通訊不受獨裁政權影響的人，以及那些尋求網絡隱私的人的歡迎。杜羅夫本人就審查和加密問題與俄羅斯政府發生過衝突。
But Telegram also has a reputationfor being the go-to app ofterrorism and hate groups. Foryears, it was used by Islamic Statemilitants to communicate andspread propaganda until Europeanpolice worked with Telegramto take down accounts associatedwith the group in 2019.The company has resisted callsto do the same for right-wingaccounts that post racist and antiSemiticmessages. Telegram tookdown some prominent publicgroups that were calling for violence,but many other feeds remainactive on the service. Somepolice officials have also said themigration from Parler to Telegramhas made it harder for themto monitor extremists and preparefor potential attacks.
但Telegram也因是恐怖主義和仇恨團體的首選應用而聞名。多年來，它一直被伊斯蘭國武裝分子用來溝通和傳播宣傳，直到2019年，歐洲警方與Telegram合作，撤銷了與該組織有關的帳戶。該公司拒絕對發布種族主義和反猶信息的右翼帳戶採取同樣的措施。Telegram撤下了一些呼籲暴力的知名公共組織，但其他許多信息源仍在該網站上活躍。一些警察官員還表示，從Parler到Telegram 的轉變使他們更難監控極端分子，並為潛在的襲擊做好準備。
The prospects for the suit’s successare uncertain. Section 230 ofthe Communications DecencyAct gives online platforms broadimmunity from responsibility formost of the content that they host.Daphne Keller, who researchesplatform regulation at StanfordLaw School, called the lawsuit along shot, but an interesting one.She said it bears similarity to suitsthat seek to force platforms toreverse their decisions to removeapps and social media accounts.「This flips the script,」 she said, byseeking to force Apple to removean app.But the lawsuit may face insurmountablebarriers because Apple’sterms of service are broad,giving the company leeway onhow it treats apps, she said. Asidefrom Section 230, Apple’s decisionto keep Telegram on its platformis protected by the company’sright to free speech.
這起訴訟成功的前景尚不明朗。《通信禮儀法》(Communications Decency Act)第230條賦予了在線平臺對其所託管的大部分內容的廣泛豁免權。史丹福大學法學院(Stanford Law School)研究平臺監管的達芙妮·凱勒(Daphne Keller)稱，這起訴訟勝算不大，但很有意思。她說，這與試圖迫使平臺改變刪除應用程式和社交媒體帳戶的決定的訴訟類似。她說，試圖迫使蘋果移除一款應用程式，但她說，這起訴訟可能會面臨不可逾越的障礙，因為蘋果的服務條款很寬泛，讓該公司在如何對待應用程式上有迴旋餘地。除了第230條，蘋果決定將Telegram保留在其平臺上是受公司言論自由權的保護。
Apple doesn’t require appssuch as Telegram rid their serviceof inappropriate content. Rather,they must have a 「method forfiltering」 it out and a way forusers to report it. They also mustprovide contact information andhave the ability to block 「abusive」users from the service.But Apple is vague about themethods of content moderationthat are required. In the past,Apple has allowed apps to existeven when its customers complainedabout the content of theapp. In 2019, when The WashingtonPost found reports of unwantedsexual content, racism andbullying on chat apps — some ofthem used by children — Appleallowed the apps to remain on thestore because, it said, they usedsome content moderation andother safeguards.When Apple removed Parlerfrom the App Store, it said in aletter that was provided to ThePost that Parler’s content moderationpolicies were not goodenough.
蘋果並不要求Telegram等應用刪除其服務中的不適當內容。相反，它們必須有一種「過濾」它的「方法」和一種讓用戶報告它的方法。他們還必須提供聯繫信息，並有能力阻止「濫用」服務的用戶。但蘋果對內容審核的方法卻含糊其辭。在過去，蘋果允許應用程式存在，即使其客戶抱怨應用程式的內容。2019年，當《華盛頓郵報》發現有關聊天應用程式中不受歡迎的性內容、種族歧視和欺凌的報導時（其中一些是兒童使用的），蘋果允許這些應用程式留在商店裡，因為他們使用了一些內容節制和其他安全措施。當蘋果將Parler從應用商店中移除時，它在一封提供給郵報的信中說，Parler的內容節制政策不夠好。
「While there is no perfectsystem to prevent all dangerousor hateful user content, apps arerequired to have robust contentmoderation plans in place to proactivelyand effectively addressthese issues,」 Apple told Parler.Google also removed Parlerfrom its app store, saying it hadwarned Parler about its lax moderationbefore making the decisionto suspend it.Ginsberg sent a letter to Applechief executive Tim Cook in Julycalling on him to address whitenationalist,anti-Semitic and violentspeech on Telegram and to「hold TELEGRAM’s financial feetto the fire.」He wrote, 「Because of the increasingprevalence of Russianand Eastern-European anti-Semiticextremist neo-Nazi groupsutilizing TELEGRAM, CSW commencedan in-depth research investigationearlier this year intoits role. Our research revealedserious instances whereby TELEGRAM’send-to-end encryptionservice was enabling.」Ginsberg said he got no reply tothe letter.
蘋果公司告訴Parler:「雖然沒有完美的方案來防止所有危險或仇恨用戶內容，但應用程式必須有健全的內容審核計劃，以積極有效地解決這些問題。」谷歌還將Parler從其應用商店下架，稱在決定暫停使用該應用之前，它曾警告過Parler的監管鬆懈。金斯伯格在7月給蘋果執行長蒂姆·庫克(Tim Cook)寫了一封信，呼籲他在Telegram上發表白人民族主義、反猶太主義和暴力的言論，並「讓Telegram的財務狀況陷入危險。」他寫道，「由於俄羅斯和東歐的反猶太極端主義新納粹組織利用TELEGRAM越來越普遍，CSW今年早些時候開始對其作用進行深入研究調查。」我們的研究揭示了TELEGRAM端到端加密服務的一些重要實例。金斯伯格說他沒有收到回信。