The terrorist who allegedly murdered 50 people and injured 50 more at two mosques in New Zealand on March 15 live streamed the attack of the first mosque on Facebook.
The video also made its way to other sites across the internet, notably YouTube, where users reported that they could still find versions of the video hours after the attack.
Facebook and YouTube have both stressed that they are cooperating with law enforcement and continuing to work to stop the spread of these videos.
Generally, despite having terms that disallow posting of violent material, Terms of Service also protect social media sites from being legally liable for what their users post.
The controversial FOSTA-SESTA act in the US, initially allegedly intended to combat sex trafficking, actually caused websites to be more diligent about hosting content related to sex, because it made them potentially legally liable for any illicit sexual activities taking place on their platform.
While these two instances are not directly related to liability for violent content, they both challenge the precedent that social media sites are not ultimately responsible for what their users post. That, dovetailing with growing sentiment that Terms Of Service are not sufficient to govern and enforce conduct, content, and privacy on social media, could add credence to the case.
A spokesman for Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand told Reuters that he supported the French group's action.