Title 47 — Telegraphs, Telephones, and RadiotelegraphsRelease 119-73
§230 Protection for private blocking and screening of offensive material
Title 47 › Chapter CHAPTER 5— - WIRE OR RADIO COMMUNICATION › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER II— - COMMON CARRIERS › Part Part I— - Common Carrier Regulation › § 230
Summary
Says online services and people who run them are not treated as the speaker or publisher of things other people post. It also protects those services and users from being sued if they act in good faith to block, remove, or limit access to material they think is obscene, violent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable. Services can also offer tools or let others use tools to filter or block content without being held responsible for the filtered material. Requires providers to tell new customers, when they sign up, that parental controls and filtering tools exist and where to find them. Keeps federal criminal laws (including 18 U.S.C. chapters on obscenity and child exploitation and sections 223 and 231) fully enforceable. Does not change copyright law. States may enforce laws that agree with this rule, but they cannot create rules that conflict with it. Also preserves privacy laws like the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986. Does not stop certain civil or criminal claims tied to human-trafficking or related statutes (see 18 U.S.C. 1595, 1591, and 2421A). Defines four key terms in brief: "Internet" (the global packet‑switched network), "interactive computer service" (services that let multiple people access a computer server), "information content provider" (someone who creates or develops content), and "access software provider" (software or tools that filter, display, or transmit content).
Full Legal Text
Title 47, §230
Telegraphs, Telephones, and Radiotelegraphs — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)The Congress finds the following:
(1)The rapidly developing array of Internet and other interactive computer services available to individual Americans represent an extraordinary advance in the availability of educational and informational resources to our citizens.
(2)These services offer users a great degree of control over the information that they receive, as well as the potential for even greater control in the future as technology develops.
(3)The Internet and other interactive computer services offer a forum for a true diversity of political discourse, unique opportunities for cultural development, and myriad avenues for intellectual activity.
(4)The Internet and other interactive computer services have flourished, to the benefit of all Americans, with a minimum of government regulation.
(5)Increasingly Americans are relying on interactive media for a variety of political, educational, cultural, and entertainment services.
(b)It is the policy of the United States—
(1)to promote the continued development of the Internet and other interactive computer services and other interactive media;
(2)to preserve the vibrant and competitive free market that presently exists for the Internet and other interactive computer services, unfettered by Federal or State regulation;
(3)to encourage the development of technologies which maximize user control over what information is received by individuals, families, and schools who use the Internet and other interactive computer services;
(4)to remove disincentives for the development and utilization of blocking and filtering technologies that empower parents to restrict their children’s access to objectionable or inappropriate online material; and
(5)to ensure vigorous enforcement of Federal criminal laws to deter and punish trafficking in obscenity, stalking, and harassment by means of computer.
(c)(1)No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.
(2)No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be held liable on account of—
(A)any action voluntarily taken in good faith to restrict access to or availability of material that the provider or user considers to be obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, excessively violent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable, whether or not such material is constitutionally protected; or
(B)any action taken to enable or make available to information content providers or others the technical means to restrict access to material described in paragraph (1).11 So in original. Probably should be “subparagraph (A).”
(d)A provider of interactive computer service shall, at the time of entering an agreement with a customer for the provision of interactive computer service and in a manner deemed appropriate by the provider, notify such customer that parental control protections (such as computer hardware, software, or filtering services) are commercially available that may assist the customer in limiting access to material that is harmful to minors. Such notice shall identify, or provide the customer with access to information identifying, current providers of such protections.
(e)(1)Nothing in this section shall be construed to impair the enforcement of section 223 or 231 of this title, chapter 71 (relating to obscenity) or 110 (relating to sexual exploitation of children) of title 18, or any other Federal criminal statute.
(2)Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit or expand any law pertaining to intellectual property.
(3)Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent any State from enforcing any State law that is consistent with this section. No cause of action may be brought and no liability may be imposed under any State or local law that is inconsistent with this section.
(4)Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the application of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 or any of the amendments made by such Act, or any similar State law.
(5)Nothing in this section (other than subsection (c)(2)(A)) shall be construed to impair or limit—
(A)any claim in a civil action brought under section 1595 of title 18, if the conduct underlying the claim constitutes a violation of section 1591 of that title;
(B)any charge in a criminal prosecution brought under State law if the conduct underlying the charge would constitute a violation of section 1591 of title 18; or
(C)any charge in a criminal prosecution brought under State law if the conduct underlying the charge would constitute a violation of section 2421A of title 18, and promotion or facilitation of prostitution is illegal in the jurisdiction where the defendant’s promotion or facilitation of prostitution was targeted.
(f)As used in this section:
(1)The term “Internet” means the international computer network of both Federal and non-Federal interoperable packet switched data networks.
(2)The term “interactive computer service” means any information service, system, or access software provider that provides or enables computer access by multiple users to a computer server, including specifically a service or system that provides access to the Internet and such systems operated or services offered by libraries or educational institutions.
(3)The term “information content provider” means any person or entity that is responsible, in whole or in part, for the creation or development of information provided through the Internet or any other interactive computer service.
(4)The term “access software provider” means a provider of software (including client or server software), or enabling tools that do any one or more of the following:
(A)filter, screen, allow, or disallow content;
(B)pick, choose, analyze, or digest content; or
(C)transmit, receive, display, forward, cache, search, subset, organize, reorganize, or translate content.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
The Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986, referred to in subsec. (e)(4), is Pub. L. 99–508, Oct. 21, 1986, 100 Stat. 1848. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see
Short Title
of 1986 Amendment note set out under section 2510 of Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure, and Tables. Codification section 509 of Pub. L. 104–104, which directed amendment of title II of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) by adding section 230 at end, was executed by adding the section at end of part I of title II of the Act to reflect the probable intent of Congress and
Amendments
by section 101(a), (b), and 151(a) of Pub. L. 104–104 designating §§ 201 to 229 as part I and adding parts II (§ 251 et seq.) and III (§ 271 et seq.) to title II of the Act.
Amendments
2018—Subsec. (e)(5). Pub. L. 115–164 added par. (5). 1998—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 105–277, § 1404(a)(3), added subsec. (d). Former subsec. (d) redesignated (e). Subsec. (d)(1). Pub. L. 105–277, § 1404(a)(1), inserted “or 231” after “section 223”. Subsecs. (e), (f). Pub. L. 105–277, § 1404(a)(2), redesignated subsecs. (d) and (e) as (e) and (f), respectively.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2018 Amendment Pub. L. 115–164, § 4(b), Apr. 11, 2018, 132 Stat. 1254, provided that: “The
Amendments
made by this section [amending this section] shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act [Apr. 11, 2018], and the amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply regardless of whether the conduct alleged occurred, or is alleged to have occurred, before, on, or after such date of enactment.”
Effective Date
of 1998 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 105–277 effective 30 days after Oct. 21, 1998, see section 1406 of Pub. L. 105–277, set out as a note under section 223 of this title. Savings Pub. L. 115–164, § 7, Apr. 11, 2018, 132 Stat. 1255, provided that: “Nothing in this Act [see
Short Title
of 2018 Amendment note set out under section 1 of Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure] or the
Amendments
made by this Act shall be construed to limit or preempt any civil action or criminal prosecution under Federal law or State law (including State statutory law and State common law) filed before or after the day before the date of enactment of this Act [Apr. 11, 2018] that was not limited or preempted by section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230), as such section was in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act.” Sense of Congress Pub. L. 115–164, § 2, Apr. 11, 2018, 132 Stat. 1253, provided that: “It is the sense of Congress that— “(1) section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230; commonly known as the ‘Communications Decency Act of 1996’) was never intended to provide legal protection to websites that unlawfully promote and facilitate prostitution and websites that facilitate traffickers in advertising the sale of unlawful sex acts with sex trafficking victims; “(2) websites that promote and facilitate prostitution have been reckless in allowing the sale of sex trafficking victims and have done nothing to prevent the trafficking of children and victims of force, fraud, and coercion; and “(3) clarification of such section is warranted to ensure that such section does not provide such protection to such websites.”
Executive Documents
Executive Order No. 13925 Ex. Ord. No. 13925,
May 28, 2020, 85 F.R. 34079, which related to moderation of content posted on social media platforms, was revoked by Ex. Ord. No. 14029, § 1,
May 14, 2021, 86 F.R. 27025.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
47 U.S.C. § 230
Title 47 — Telegraphs, Telephones, and Radiotelegraphs
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73