Page 11 - Kattison Avenue - Fall 2025 - Issue 15

New York’s Strategy — Stop Hiding Hate Act

The New York Stop Hiding Hate Act governs platforms operating in New York with more than $100 million in gross annual
revenue. It requires social media platforms to outline their content moderation policies and provide users with avenues to report
violations of the policy. Content moderation is the key theme across the Western hemisphere to protect users online. Failure to
comply with requirements in New York can result in penalties of up to $15,000 per violation per day.

Accountability Meets Geography: Practicalities of Enforcement

There is a clear global movement to regulate online platforms for the protection of users and place larger online platforms under
greater scrutiny, but implementation across borders is difficult and often contested. The Office of Communications (Ofcom),
the United Kingdom’s regulator, is currently in dispute with 4chan, an internet forum provider, over compliance with the OSA —
but what jurisdiction does Ofcom actually have over a US-based company with no presence in the United Kingdom? This case
illustrates the uncertainties of the OSA’s extraterritorial scope beyond service restrictions in the United Kingdom and criminal
penalties.

Geo-blocking UK users from access may not be a fool-proof method, as recent developments indicate that geo-blocking alone may
fall short of statutory duties when services remain accessible through circumvention tools (such as the use of VPNs) and mirror
sites. The stakes are high; success of these global safety regimes will need them to reach beyond borders and meaningfully shape
the global internet for the protection of users.

*Amelie Hitchings, a trainee in our London office, contributed to this article.

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