Ripple Labs Sues Google’s YouTube for Letting Scams about Free XRP on the Platform

UTC by Bhushan Akolkar · 3 min read
Ripple Labs Sues Google’s YouTube for Letting Scams about Free XRP on the Platform
Photo: Unsplash

Ripple said that it had reached out to YouTube for several times making them aware of the “fake giveaways” done on their platform using the Ripple trademark. Now it accuses the Google-owned video streaming giant of not taking sufficient action.

The San Francisco-based blockchain payments company Ripple Labs has decided to drag Google‘s Youtube platform to the court for failing to police against fake XRP giveaway scams. Ripple claims that this led to huge reputational harm to the company along with monetary damage to its users.

Along with YouTube, Ripple has also named several other social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook. However, it seems that the lawsuit is currently directed only towards YouTube. The blockchain company wrote:

“This lawsuit calls on the video platform to do a number of things. First, to be more aggressive and proactive in identifying these scams, before they’re posted. Second, faster removal of these scams once they are identified and lastly, to not profit from these scams.”

The complaint specifically stated that the “giveaway scams” are targeting social media users who have lost thousands of dollars in funds. In a series of tweets, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said that YouTube is the epicenter of all the scamming platforms. He added:

“Across the industry, social media companies have failed to police their platforms from being abused by the entirely preventable imposter giveaway scams. Hundreds of people (including some of you) have been hurt, yet big tech continues to drag their feet. These scams accurately impersonate individuals and companies, and are often spread through fake social media profiles”.

Besides, the Ripple lawsuit also cites one instance where the scammers managed to steal $15,000 in XRP tokens from a victim.

Ripple Goes All-Out against YouTube

In the lawsuit, Ripple said that it had appraised YouTube of such scams on at least 25 different instances, However, the video streaming platform failed to act in a timely manner. The lawsuit states:

“Ripple has repeatedly demanded that YouTube take action to stop the Scam and prevent further harm. Yet YouTube refuses, even where the same scheme is replicated time and again on its platform. YouTube’s response has been woefully inadequate and incomplete. As a result, Ripple and Mr. Garlinghouse continue to suffer substantial reputational harm,”

The lawsuit has also asked courts to force YouTube to shut down all the alleged scams which use Ripple’s registered trademarks to promote these scams. The lawsuit mentions:

“The Court should compel YouTube to fulfill its legal obligations, to discontinue its policy of willful inaction, and to prevent further irreparable harm to Ripple’s brand and Mr. Garlinghouse’s reputation, which, in turn, will prevent further financial injury to the individuals who are duped by the Scam. Absent a court order obligating YouTube to act, the Scam will undoubtedly continue to flourish and create countless more victims”.

Well, there’s no official statement from YouTube as of now, but a YouTube spokesperson reached out to The Block.

“We take abuse of our platform seriously, and take action quickly when we detect violations of our policies, such as scams or impersonation,” stated the company’s representative.

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