Twitter has been ordered to hand over the personal information of a widely followed and anonymous pro-Labour account as part of a defamation lawsuit brought by far-right figure Avi Yemini.
The anonymous Twitter PRGuy17 was created in March 2020, around the time the pandemic hit Australia, with a user photo of Simpsons character Troy McClure.
The account often posted content strongly supportive of the Victorian Premier, Daniel Andrews, and attempted to get pro-Labor messages trending on the site.
The account has built a strong following on the website, amassing more than 77,000 followers.
Yemini, who said on his Rebel News website that he had been banned from the account, launched federal court proceedings in March against the account and tweets he claims were defamatory.
Jemini has repeatedly said that he wants the identity of the person behind the account to be revealed.
Guardian Australia has requested court documents outlining the case.
In consent orders on Tuesday, Judge Debbie Mortimer ordered Twitter to hand over basic subscriber information, including the account name and email address on the date of signup, within 14 days.
The orders also require the IP addresses associated with the account at the time of registration, as well as between the end of December last year and February 11, 2022, and between March 21 and May 20 this year.
Orders with consent mean that it has been agreed to by Twitter, which will comply with the order. Twitter has indicated in the past that it will only hand over subscriber information when requested through court orders or other legal processes.
It is not the first case of its kind where a technology platform has been ordered to hand over the account information of anonymous users for the purpose of identifying who is behind the defamatory account. In recent years, cases have been brought against Google to unmask people who leave anonymous reviews of businesses.
If the basic account information does not provide any clues as to the identity of the account owner, IP addresses will be the next avenue of investigation. If the account owner did not use a virtual private network (VPN) at the time the account was logged in, the IP addresses will reveal which ISP or mobile provider the account used.
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The telecommunications company is usually brought before the court to provide information about who had the IP address at the time associated with the account. In 2020, Optus handed over information revealing the identity of an anonymous negative reviewer on the website of Melbourne dentist Dr Matthew Kabbabe after he took legal action. The matter was then settled.
Digital Rights Watch program director Samantha Floreani said it was too early to determine what implications the case might have for online anonymity, but said it could reignite political desires to push social media companies to collect more information. personal information of users so that they can more easily discover their identity.
“I also worry about the message this sends to people watching the case unfold,” she said. “It’s really important to remember that for many people the ability to be anonymous online is a vital safety mechanism and that it also plays a key role in protecting our right to privacy, freedom of speech and people’s ability to participate in democracy.”
“It’s easy to lose sight of the value of anonymity when you’re caught up in an online frenzy about highly divisive internet personalities.”
Jemini is also seeking donations through his website for a legal fund, while a recent crowdfunding campaign to “buy a beer” for PRGuy17 says it will cover “obtaining legal advice and security, the costs of living and general”. So far it has raised over $18,000.
Guardian Australia has sought comment from PRGuy17.
