Verizon, Cloud Storage Vendor Seek Dismissal of AI Defamation Complaint

Verizon seeks the dismissal of plaintiff William Lawshe's AI defamation complaint against the carrier and its cloud storage vendor, Synchronoss Technologies, said its motion Friday (docket 3:24-cv-00137) in U.S. District Court for Middle Florida in Jacksonville. Lawshe, a Verizon customer, alleges that Verizon and Synchronoss used AI to monitor and screen his data and incorrectly identified a file in his possession as containing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) (see 2402070004). Lawshe’s amended complaint shows that he has “no viable claim” against Verizon, said its motion to dismiss. His claims against Verizon arise out of the fact that Verizon reported images in his Verizon account to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) based on “matched hash values” with other images previously identified as likely CSAM, it said. Even when viewing all facts in the light most favorable to Lawshe, these claims “should be dismissed for two independent reasons,” it said. First, Verizon is immune from suit “under multiple statutory provisions that bar actions against providers” based on precisely the type of reporting that Lawshe alleges, it said. Second, disclosures to NCMEC also aren’t actionable under federal law, it said. Synchronoss also filed a motion to dismiss Friday in which it contends that Lawshe is barred from proceeding with a claim for defamation against Synchronoss “because certain statutory provisions bar actions against Synchronoss for the specified conduct.”