Thailand sues Facebook, Twitter for allowing banned material

 Thailand’s government lodged complaints with police Thursday against Facebook and Twitter, alleging y failed to comply with court orders to block content judged illegal under Thai law.

Minister of Digital Ecomy and Society Buddhipongse Punnakanta said at a news conference that it was first time his ministry has taken such action against social media companies under Thailand’s Computer Crime Act. It has prosecuted website and account owners and users in past.

ministry filed complaints at police Techlogy Crime Suppression Division, where Buddhipongse said companies h failed to meet 15-day delines issued by courts to block hundreds of accounts.

He said targeted sites were banned because y contained illegal content related to online gambling, porgraphy, drugs or monarchy, a highly sensitive subject.

ministry also filed complaints against parties using five accounts to disseminate material considered offensive during a large anti-government rally this past weekend.

Buddhipongse said Facebook h blocked access in Thailand to 215 of 661 accounts his ministry h requested. Twitter h blocked four of 69 accounts, he said.

Police Col. Siriwat Deepor, deputy chief of Techlogy Crime Suppression Division, said two companies could face fines of t more than 200,000 baht ($6,325) and an ditional daily fine of 5,000 baht ($158) for each day accounts remain unblocked.

Kate Hayes, a spokeswoman for Facebook’s Asia-Pacific operations, said company did t have any comment for w on Thai action. A spokesman for Twitter could t be reached.

In August, Ministry of of Digital Ecomy and Society successfully pressured Facebook to block a popular p about monarchy.

“We are protecting our sovereignty, which may t mean protecting physical borders in tritional sense but rar ... protecting our cyber sovereignty,” Buddhipongse said at time. He declared that such attacks “happen fast and are constantly damaging Thais.”