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posted by chromas on Tuesday March 27 2018, @04:02AM   Printer-friendly
from the too-risky-to-keep-running-the-dept-generating dept.

In response to the passage of the Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act (FOSTA), Craigslist has removed Personals sections for U.S. users:

Classified advertising website Craigslist has closed its dating ads section in the US, in response to a new bill against sex trafficking.

The bill states that websites can now be punished for "facilitating" prostitution and sex trafficking.

Ads promoting prostitution and child sexual abuse have previously been posted in the "personals" section of Craigslist.

The company said keeping the section open in the US was too much of a risk.

In a statement, Craigslist said the new law would "subject websites to criminal and civil liability when third parties (users) misuse online personals unlawfully".

Reddit also took the opportunity to ban a number of subreddits (list not exhaustive), including some like /r/escorts, but many more broadly related to "transactions for goods and services".

Also at Ars Technica and The Verge.


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  • (Score: 5, Insightful) by anubi on Tuesday March 27 2018, @06:58AM

    by anubi (2828) on Tuesday March 27 2018, @06:58AM (#658882) Journal

    I think Craigslist is for my neighbors. They are expected to call if they want it, come by, pick it up, and pay in cash.

    And EBAY is for the nation. I am expected to ship it. And take pre-arranged payment methods through third parties.

    I've used both, and appreciate each ones strengths.

    I would not put a used bicycle on EBAY, nor will I list a water pump for a 1938 Ford on Craigslist. The bicycle isn't worth the shipping fees, nor are any of my neighbors probably interested in the pump... but someone in the nation probably needs that exact pump badly.

    No, I will definitely not miss the personals section going away. I have seen it... was not impressed. Looked like a quick way to get into more trouble than I care to deal with.

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