Prohibited Communications – New Law Criminalizes Anonymous “Annoying” Posts

A revision to an anti-harassment law gives the Department of Justice the power to prosecute people who post “annoying” comments anonymously. As might be expected, the term “annoying” is not defined in the legislation. Because this is a criminal law, it provides no private right of action – meaning the Department of Justice must enforce this provision. However, Internet infrastructure providers should begin to expect speech related abuse complaints to cite this law as a reason to terminate customers and as a potential source of liability for the provider. Cnet Article Library of Congress versions of the Bill