Torts Keyed to Prosser
Carafano v. Metrosplash.com, Inc.
Facts
Matchmaker.com (like Match.com, eHarmony.com, etc.) was a commercial Internet dating service where individuals, for a fee, could post anonymous profiles and view profiles of other members in the area, with the ability to contact such members via email sent through the website server. There was also a questionnaire section with multiple choice and essay answers where members could provide additional detail; some answers were innocuous while others were sexually suggestive. Matchmaker reviewed photos for impropriety before posting but did not review the profiles themselves, relying instead on participants to adhere to service guidelines. Such guidelines prohibited members from posting last names, addresses, phone numbers or email addresses within a profile. On October 23, 1999, an unknown person posted a “trial” profile of Plaintiff Carafano without her permission or knowledge in the Los Angeles section of the site (Plaintiff is also known by her stage name as Chase Masterson). Such profile included sexually related commentary and contained photos of the actress and listed her movies. It also provided a fake email address for contact, and upon sending an email to this address, one would get an automatic response stating “You think you are the right one? Proof it!!”, and provided Plaintiff’s home address and telephone number. As a result of the profile, Plaintiff received numerous threats and sexually explicit messages via email and voicemail. After contacting the website and getting the profile removed, Plaintiff filed suit against Defendant in California, alleging invasion of privacy, misappropriation of the right of publicity, defamation, and negligence. After removal, the district court granted Defendant’s motion for summary judgment, although it rejected Defendant’s immunity argument under 47 U.S.C. §230(c)(1).
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