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| Facebook isn’t to blame for failing to prevent Lee Rigby murder, says Clegg | |
| (4 months later) | |
| Facebook should not be blamed for failing to stop the murder of the soldier Lee Rigby, Nick Clegg has said. | Facebook should not be blamed for failing to stop the murder of the soldier Lee Rigby, Nick Clegg has said. |
| After it emerged that one of the killers used the social media site to write about wanting to kill a soldier, the deputy prime minister said on his on his Call Clegg LBC radio show that it was not right if people were “somehow trying to blame an internet service provider” for the brutal killing in Woolwich in May 2013. | After it emerged that one of the killers used the social media site to write about wanting to kill a soldier, the deputy prime minister said on his on his Call Clegg LBC radio show that it was not right if people were “somehow trying to blame an internet service provider” for the brutal killing in Woolwich in May 2013. |
| A report by parliament’s intelligence and security committee (ISC) found that the security services were unaware that one of his killers wrote on a website – later named as Facebook – of his desire to slaughter a soldier. | A report by parliament’s intelligence and security committee (ISC) found that the security services were unaware that one of his killers wrote on a website – later named as Facebook – of his desire to slaughter a soldier. |
| The report has led to pressure on internet companies to report more suspicious comments by their users to the security services or police. | The report has led to pressure on internet companies to report more suspicious comments by their users to the security services or police. |
| But Clegg said: “What this independent report by the committee highlighted was that more needs to be done so that the internet service providers have got their kind of own alarm systems. So that with all the millions of communications that go across their networks that where something of serious concern happens that can be sort of flagged up … | But Clegg said: “What this independent report by the committee highlighted was that more needs to be done so that the internet service providers have got their kind of own alarm systems. So that with all the millions of communications that go across their networks that where something of serious concern happens that can be sort of flagged up … |
| “But you’re absolutely right it’s not saying that it’s anybody’s fault as such. I think what the ISC has said quite rightly is that in looking, with the benefit of hindsight which is always a good thing, at what happened in the run-up to this terrible murder it feels some procedures overseen by the security services and others need to be tightened up.” | “But you’re absolutely right it’s not saying that it’s anybody’s fault as such. I think what the ISC has said quite rightly is that in looking, with the benefit of hindsight which is always a good thing, at what happened in the run-up to this terrible murder it feels some procedures overseen by the security services and others need to be tightened up.” |
| Challenged about whether failures by the security service were in fact more to blame than internet companies, Clegg said it was not a case of “trying to apportion exclusive blame”, adding: “They point out a number of weaknesses in the way in which information is circulated. In the way in which things are … information is examined. But they say very clearly that in their judgment it wasn’t preventable by the agencies. That’s the point that they’re making.” | Challenged about whether failures by the security service were in fact more to blame than internet companies, Clegg said it was not a case of “trying to apportion exclusive blame”, adding: “They point out a number of weaknesses in the way in which information is circulated. In the way in which things are … information is examined. But they say very clearly that in their judgment it wasn’t preventable by the agencies. That’s the point that they’re making.” |
| Clegg’s defence of the internet company echoes the comments of the former global counter-terrorism director of MI6, who said it would be impractical and unfair to expect Facebook to monitor messages for terrorist intent and report them to the security services. | Clegg’s defence of the internet company echoes the comments of the former global counter-terrorism director of MI6, who said it would be impractical and unfair to expect Facebook to monitor messages for terrorist intent and report them to the security services. |
| Richard Barrett, a former counter-terrorism chief at MI5 and MI6, said he doubted the capacity of Facebook to sift through the volume of content handled by the website each day, as well as that of the security services to deal with the amount of information that would be referred to them if an obligation was placed on internet companies. | Richard Barrett, a former counter-terrorism chief at MI5 and MI6, said he doubted the capacity of Facebook to sift through the volume of content handled by the website each day, as well as that of the security services to deal with the amount of information that would be referred to them if an obligation was placed on internet companies. |
| “Facebook has about one and a third billion users and about five billion posts a day so clearly on a worldwide basis it would be almost impossible to deal with the amount of stuff that was referred,” Barrett told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. | “Facebook has about one and a third billion users and about five billion posts a day so clearly on a worldwide basis it would be almost impossible to deal with the amount of stuff that was referred,” Barrett told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. |
| “And even in the United Kingdom there are about 25 million users of Facebook and so let’s say possibly about 125m posts a day. And even if you take out all the pictures of kittens which were put up you’d still be left with an awful lot to go through and then quite a percentage of those perhaps would be passed on for the police or security services to look at. So it would be an enormous task, I think.” | “And even in the United Kingdom there are about 25 million users of Facebook and so let’s say possibly about 125m posts a day. And even if you take out all the pictures of kittens which were put up you’d still be left with an awful lot to go through and then quite a percentage of those perhaps would be passed on for the police or security services to look at. So it would be an enormous task, I think.” |
| Following the ISC report, David Cameron said it was companies’ social responsibility to report when their networks were being used “to plot murder and mayhem” and promised action. | Following the ISC report, David Cameron said it was companies’ social responsibility to report when their networks were being used “to plot murder and mayhem” and promised action. |