Colombian Court Rules Meta Violated Free Expression in Porn Actress Instagram Ban

Colombia's Constitutional Court ruled that Meta violated the freedom of expression of adult content actress Esperanza Gómez by arbitrarily deleting her Instagram account, which had over five million followers. The court found Meta's enforcement of its nudity policies inconsistent, noting other similar accounts remained active while Gómez's was removed without clear explanation or due process. It ordered Meta to revise Instagram's terms of use and privacy policies to clarify content moderation rules, especially regarding implicit sexual content, and provide transparent mechanisms for users to challenge moderation decisions. The ruling emphasized that while content moderation is necessary, it must be applied proportionately and transparently, and if offline activities influence moderation, such criteria must be explicitly stated. No sanctions were imposed on Meta, and the company has yet to respond to the decision. This ruling aligns with broader South American judicial efforts to regulate social media platforms, following Brazil’s Supreme Court holding platforms directly liable for illegal content and requiring prompt removal actions.