The “Ask an Internet Attorney” column focuses on real-life questions that we have been asked by readers in the U.S. and beyond. Have a question related to law and the internet? Email Christine Rafin, Esq, an attorney specializing in Internet law with the subject line: Q&A Question.
I am a high net worth male who has been “stalked” on Wikipedia by an individual who has made continuous edits over the years, all false and inappropriate. Beyond reporting them to Wikipedia editors, do I have any legal options?
A strongly worded cease and desist letter to the perpetrator (if known) and a lawsuit are the two possible legal solutions here. If you don’t know who is behind it, to start you will have to subpoena Wikipedia for any identifying information about the individual that it may possess. Depending on your jurisdiction, that entails commencing litigation or engaging in pre-litigation discovery.
I own a successful, respected company. Someone I believe is a former employee is publishing fake, negative reviews about my company. They are not credible nor do they address our products in a legitimate way. Do I have any legal options?
Your first step is to consider the website(s) on which the review(s) appear and the policies of that website regarding removal of posts. You likely will want to send a takedown notice to the website regarding the reviews. In some instances, the website will remove the fake reviews. In other instances, the website will tell you that it won’t remove anything without a court order.
If you are dealing with an anonymous post, but are relatively certain who is behind it, I recommend contacting that person directly – either through a company representative or legal counsel. Depending on the circumstances, you may want to consider sending a cease and desist letter. Before doing so, you should consider who are you are dealing with – and how they may respond to a letter from counsel. Depending on the harm caused by the reviews, you may also want to consider litigation.
Someone has created a fake website about my company that makes false, derogatory accusations about it (and me). The site is appearing directly below the real one. He (or she) has also set up a fake Twitter account in my name and is sending profane tweets pretending to be me. What are my legal options?
There are multiple layers to this question, so we will take it piecemeal. Spoof websites are often created against companies and individuals with the intent to harm them. Many of these sites are protected by the First Amendment, such as websites poking fun at someone or compiling publicly available information (e.g., court records, arrests, civil judgments, etc.).
These websites may cross the line, however, and run afoul of the law. You have many options to consider, such as contacting the web host directly with a takedown notice. You can also send a cease and desist notice to the person who registered the domain. If someone registered a similar-to-almost identical domain name, the domain registration may also constitute trademark infringement.
If someone set up a fake Twitter account to impersonate you, you should report it directly to Twitter. Twitter provides instructions for doing so on its website. While it may take a little bit of time, Twitter should deactivate that account. If the person persists and you know that the same person is utilizing a coordinated attack against you, you may need to file a lawsuit and get, among other things, a restraining order and injunction to stop them.
Christine Rafin, Esq. specializes in Internet, communications and media law. She is Associate General Counsel – Media and Compliance at American Media, LLC in New York and a Reputation Communications’ Advisory Board member. She has authored articles such as “ An Attorney’s Advice for Removing Negative, Defamatory and Infringing Material from the Internet.”
This column is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice, nor is it a substitute for obtaining legal advice from an attorney. Reading it or communicating with Christine Rafin, Esq. through this site does not form an attorney/client relationship. Each situation is unique, and you should not act or rely on any information contained herein without seeking the advice of an experienced attorney.
