WASHINGTON, DC (February 5, 2026) – The National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) is urging Congress to repeal Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, as the law turns 30 years old on February 8, 2026. NCOSE named Section 230 to its 2025 Dirty Dozen List.
“The billion-dollar tech industry currently exists above the law because of Section 230. Courts have misinterpreted Section 230’s intent, protecting social media platforms even when they commit heinous crimes such as knowingly distributing and profiting from child sexual abuse material. Rather than incentivizing tech companies to make their platforms safer, Section 230 has emboldened them to recklessly pursue profits at any cost. As a result, the tech industry is larger and more profitable than any industry on the planet and effectively shielded from any liability for harm to consumers,” said Dani Pinter, Chief Legal Officer and Director of the Law Center at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation.
“Section 230 is titled, ‘Protection for ‘Good Samaritan’ blocking and screening of offensive material.’ By its title and purpose, this provision was passed by Congress to protect children and incentivize websites of the then-nascent Internet industry to voluntarily take steps to make their platforms safe. Instead, Section 230 has become a shield against accountability for Big Tech’s bad-faith decisions.
“Our 2025 Dirty Dozen List highlighted 12 survivors who were prevented from receiving justice because of Section 230. In one case, a teenage boy was extorted by a predator on Snapchat into sending images (child sexual abuse material, or CSAM) of himself; those images were widely circulated on Twitter. Despite that he reported the images and sex trafficking to Twitter, the company responded by telling him that it had reviewed the CSAM but would not remove the images, which continued to circulate while Twitter profited. The trial and appeals courts ruled that Twitter (now X) was immune under Section 230 for profiting from his sex trafficking and even for knowing possession and distribution of CSAM.
“We cannot permit this any longer. And with the rise of artificial intelligence, this is even more urgent. We urge Congress to pass the bipartisan-supported Sunset Section 230 Act to repeal Big Tech’s liability shield to hold Big Tech accountable, give survivors access to justice, and prevent online sexual abuse and exploitation at a mass scale,” Pinter said.
Watch Ms. Pinter speak during a February 4 press conference about CDA 230: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzueOHzfGWE. Read Ms. Pinter’s latest column about Section 230 at The Hill, “Social media is a sex trafficking marketplace — US law creates a safe haven.”
About National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE)
Founded in 1962, the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) is the leading national non-profit organization exposing the links between all forms of sexual exploitation such as child sexual abuse, prostitution, sex trafficking and the public health harms of pornography.
To schedule an interview with NCOSE, please contact press@ncose.com.
