Brazil sues chat platform Discord over failure to protect child users

Brazil has filed a lawsuit against Discord, a popular gaming platform for online communication, seeking $97 million in damages due to its alleged failure to protect children online. The lawsuit comes after a July suicide case linked to the platform. Brazil's government claims that the company did not adequately protect children on its platform, which allows users to communicate, talk, and disappear into rooms that parents cannot monitor.

The Solicitor-General for President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated that the damages are due to alleged collective psychological harm caused by Discord's lack of age-verification systems and user safety protections. Discord responded by calling the lawsuit "disproportionate" and denying any direct violations of Brazilian law regarding the protection of vulnerable groups, including children and teenagers.

The government is also seeking immediate improvements in parental controls, cooperation with local law enforcement, and the use of automated tools to detect and remove dangerous content. This is not the first time Brazil has taken legal action against Discord; similar lawsuits are ongoing in U.S. states such as Texas, Nevada, and New Jersey.

Brazil's first lady, Rosângela Lula da Silva, has called for the platform to be taken offline, citing the suicide case involving five teenagers.