PROTECT Act

Summary

Repeals the federal immunity in 47 U.S.C. § 230 that currently shields online platforms and other "interactive computer services" from most civil liability for third‑party content, and updates numerous federal statutes and cross‑references to remove or replace citations to that immunity. The repeal and the conforming changes take effect on the date of enactment and are intended to shift how federal criminal and civil laws apply to online intermediaries and the content they host. By eliminating the Section 230 framework and redirecting or replacing references across several criminal, intellectual property, and communications statutes, the bill removes a major legal defense used by websites, social networks, and other online services and creates immediate legal and operational uncertainty for platforms, content creators, users, and enforcement agencies.

• Repeals 47 U.S.C. § 230 in full, removing the principal federal immunity for online platforms regarding third‑party content.
• Makes targeted edits across multiple federal statutes to remove or replace references to Section 230 and to adjust related definitions and cross‑references.
• Redirects some prior Section 230 definitions to the definition in 47 U.S.C. § 223(i), producing substantive changes in coverage and liability rules.
• Takes effect immediately on the date of enactment; there is no phase‑in period or transitional statutory safe harbor.
• Likely to increase civil and criminal exposure for online platforms and raise compliance and litigation costs, particularly for smaller services.
• Expected to prompt litigation and judicial interpretation as courts resolve how prior doctrines and cross‑references operate without Section 230.
• Does not provide new funding or appropriations and does not itself create new regulatory agencies or enforcement programs.
• Will likely produce operational changes by platforms (more removals, stricter moderation, or feature limits) and could reduce the volume of user‑generated content.