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Do you Yahoo? If so, you also better watch what you say.
Savannah Foods' parent company, Imperial Sugar Co., is taking Web
directory Yahoo to court to discover the real names of people who
leave defamatory messages on the site's message board.
Imperial Sugar claims several people have written messages about
the company that damage its business.
On Friday, the 152nd Judicial District Court of Harris County,
Texas, (Houston area) will decide whether to order Yahoo to grant
Imperial's request. Publicly traded Imperial Sugar is based in
Sugarland, Texas.
During the past 60 days, there have been some "very
strong" chat room discussions about improprieties at an
Imperial facility and postings that could count as Securities and
Exchange Commission violations, according to William Schwer, general
council for Imperial.
"We're not saying that Yahoo is doing anything wrong, and
that is why Yahoo has generally cooperated with companies,"
Schwer said. He also said Yahoo's policy states it will release
names under court order.
What people have to remember is although they may be voicing
their opinions in cyberspace, what they say there is still subject
to very familiar-sounding rules and laws, said Coralee Whitcomb,
president of the Palo Alto, Calif.-based Computer Professionals for
Social Responsibility.
Services like Yahoo have to be very clear what their rules are
and what their privacy policies are, she said. Meanwhile, users have
to read these rules.
Part of the confusion also comes from a national reluctance to
make decisions about Internet laws. Congress and the Securities and
Exchange Commission have been slow to address the Internet, Whitcomb
said.
"We haven't necessarily made the overlay of real world laws
onto the Internet," Whitcomb said.
The Motivation
When Imperial presents its case on Friday, its lawyers will be
trying to do just that. The company wants to know the real people
behind the following user names: "ducko-1999,"
"mouthofthesouth1961," "bestinthewest," "midwestrader,"
"henryvii2040," "shawnelson," "irightuwrong,"
and "buy-lower-sell-higher."
As for the actions Imperial would take after learning the true
identities, Schwer declined to give any details other than saying
the company is interested in talking to the people.
"We don't know what they're trying to do," Schwer said.
Some messages have alleged sexual and substance abuse at Imperial
facilities. These messages resulted in Imperial launching an
internal investigation.
"We have not to date found anything to support those
allegations," Schwer said.
Other messages have listed either suspected inside information --
such as potential deals only company employees are privy to -- or
suspected fraudulent information.
In either case, Schwer said, posting such information could
qualify as Securities and Exchange Commission violations by
manipulating stock prices.
For several years now, Imperial has been beset by a world sugar
glut, mounting debt from its acquisition of companies such as
Savannah Foods and Wall Street indifference to the sugar industry.
The result has been a steadily slipping stock price. With such a
depressed stock, any fraudulent information released to the public
could possibly hamper the company's ability to protect investors.
"If they are leaking inside information, I think we have the
responsibility to find out," Schwer said.
Rules of the Web
Yahoo -- like hundreds of other Web sites -- offers free e-mail
accounts to subscribers. Users fill out an online registration form
for the service.
As part of its terms of service, the Santa Clara, Calif.-based
company requires subscribers to provide true information about
themselves and to update the information.
The message board system will allow a person with an e-mail
account to post messages. The Yahoo terms of service specify
"when you register with Yahoo, we ask for your name, e-mail
address, birth date, gender, zip code, occupation, industry and
personal interests. Once you register with Yahoo and sign in to our
services, you are not anonymous to us."
Yahoo does not take responsibility for the accuracy, integrity or
quality of information found on its site. It does, however, require
members to not "transmit any content that is unlawful, harmful,
threatening, abusive, harassing, tortious, defamatory, vulgar,
obscene, libelous, invasive of another's privacy, hateful, or
racially, ethnically or otherwise objectionable."
The Web giant states it will not sell or rent the personal
information of users but "we will respond to subpoenas, court
orders or legal process."
Yahoo officials were mum on details regarding the case, stating
in an e-mail that it does not release details about pending
litigation.
Schwer said Imperial filed its court petition based on what other
companies have done to learn the true identities of message board
posters.
"The petition itself is a way to clear that it is not a
Yahoo issue," Schwer said.
Yahoo spokeswoman Shannon Stubo wouldn't say how many times the
company has released user identification, but did say Yahoo has
complied with subpoenas since 1996 when the site first offered
message boards. Yahoo will notify subscribers about the subpoena and
give them 15 days to respond.
"Yes, we've turned over user information when we've been
compelled to do so," she said.
The Effects
While companies like Imperial Sugar can use the legal system to
sniff out people who post damaging or libelous information under the
cloak of anonymity, such action can also have a chilling effect for
users.
Subscribers often get a sense of community out of informing or
debating with other similar-minded people online. But, with the
threat of legal action hanging over their musings, users may want be
wary of what they say online.
"We've moved from a world where conversations within
someone's home or small groups have been moved online for the world
to view," Alan Davidson, staff counsel with the Center for
Democracy and Technology in Washington D.C. The organization is a
non-profit civil liberties group geared toward research and public
policy development for the Internet.
"I'd hate to see a world where an exciting new way to talk
to each other is responsible for dragging people to court every
other day," he said.
Davidson concedes message board users looking to cause trouble
won't have to look far. But he doubts the ranting online posters
make will adversely affect a company in any great degree.
"I have to wonder how much impact any given message board
will have on the value of a company or its stock. People who
frequent message boards know they have to take everything they read
online suspiciously," Davidson said.
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