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eBay is off the hook for selling harmful products

A federal judge has dismissed allegations from the DOJ lawsuit.

A US government lawsuit accusing eBay of selling almost 350,000 polluting and environmentally harmful products — including pesticides and “defeat” devices that let motor vehicles evade emission controls — has been dismissed by a federal judge. On Monday, District Judge Orelia Merchant ruled that eBay isn’t liable for items that users sell on the digital marketplace due to civil protections that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act provides for online platforms. Merchant also ruled that administrative and technical support that eBay provides to sellers, such as messages, email notifications, and processing payments, doesn’t materially contribute to the “alleged unlawfulness” of illegal products.

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