Rodgers: Commerce Committee to Target Section 230’s Role in Illegal Drug Sales

Witnesses testified before a panel roundtable Wednesday, describing Big Tech’s role in facilitating illegal drugs containing fentanyl and an overdose “crisis” affecting teen users on social media platforms. Amy Neville, founder of the Alexander Neville Foundation, detailed her 14-year-old son’s death in 2020. Through Snapchat, Alexander bought what he thought was an oxycontin pill, she said: It was a counterfeit drug containing enough fentanyl to kill four people.

Platforms aren’t doing enough to protect young users from drug dealers, who target vulnerable users, said Rodgers. She noted Commerce Committee Republicans sent letters last year to tech CEOs asking them to “do their part” to protect children from fentanyl poisoning.

Communications Decency Act Section 230 is the biggest hurdle to holding tech platforms accountable, testified Carrie Goldberg, founder of C.A. Goldberg, a firm representing victims of social media-related harm. Congress can act by carving out liability for platforms when there are wrongful deaths involving the services, she said, arguing tech executives should be held responsible. She said Congress should make it illegal for platforms to provide material support in interstate drug deals for counterfeit pills.

Another issue is that platforms like Snapchat delete messaging data on a rapid basis, eliminating crucial evidence for law enforcement, said Social Media Victims Law Center attorney Laura Marquez-Garrett. Privacy advocates often argue in favor of platforms deleting user data they no longer need. Marquez-Garrett said platforms need to stop allowing drug dealers and other malicious actors “unfettered” access to messaging users.

It’s not just a Snapchat problem, said Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels. The list includes activity on WhatsApp, Telegram and Signal, and police are constantly learning about new platforms drug dealers use when well-known ones cooperate with law enforcement, he said. These companies have no obligation to retain user data, and they often promote the idea that user communication will be safe from law enforcement scrutiny, he said. Nowels opposed platforms deploying end-to-end encryption, saying it hinders investigations. Cybersecurity advocates often argue that end-to-end encryption should be a standard protection.

Rep. Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., asked how to hold tech executives accountable. Goldberg told him a platform that knows of constant, recurring illegal behavior has a heightened responsibility to solve the problem, and if they don’t, leadership needs to face liability. Guthrie said he agrees Section 230 shouldn’t give platforms “carte blanche.”

It seems the power of these apps centers around algorithms and targeted content, said Rep. John Curtis, R-Utah. Congress should explore removing liability protection when platforms use algorithms to amplify and promote certain kinds of content, he said: When a platform starts selecting and ranking content, it becomes more than just a medium for public communication.

Social media algorithms are designed to maximize engagement, which is what creates the harm, said Marquez-Garrett. There could be major implications for algorithmic decision-making when the Supreme Court reaches a decision in Gonzalez v. Google, which will be the first time the high court deals directly with Section 230, said Goldberg. It’s wrong for companies to have immunity when they’re feeding content to users through product features, she said.

Rodgers named Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., chair of the House Innovation Subcommittee, which was called the House Consumer Protection Subcommittee in 2022.