Brazil court orders social network to pay R$30,000 for fake defamatory profile

The 4ª Vara Cível da Comarca de Santos in Santa Catarina ruled that a social networking platform must pay R$30,000 in moral damages to a man whose family was subjected to false accusations of pedophilia, rape and death threats. The judgment also imposed a daily fine of R$10,000, capped at R$50,000, and ordered the permanent deletion of the offending account.

The false profile displayed personal photographs of the victim and his relatives to lend credibility to the criminal allegations. Despite repeated requests to remove the content, the platform failed to act, prompting the lawsuit. The judge cited Supreme Court precedents that impose a strict duty of care on digital platforms for the circulation of manifestly illegal or criminal material, stating that the company profited from engagement with abusive content while remaining negligent.

The decision is being cited as a landmark for holding online platforms accountable in Brazil, signaling that courts will enforce stricter monitoring and rapid response to defamatory or illegal content posted by users.