Reddit is staring down the barrel of a lawsuit this morning as the social media platform is being sured by a woman whose ex-boyfriend repeatedly posted sexually explicit images of her at 16 years old without her consent.

The lawsuit specifically brings the divisive FOSTA-SESTA act into play, which was signed into law by former US President Donald Trump in 2018 as a measure to stop online sex trafficking, with it also earning the ire of sex workers in the United States.

In documentation filed under the Central Court District of California a few days ago, the plaintiff alleges that she reached out to Reddit moderators regarding the content on several occasions, only to be told that it would take a few days to process the request. Added to this was the fact that not all of the sexually explicit content in question could be removed or indeed be permanently banned.

As such, this lawsuit appears to be a last resort from the plaintiff.

As Engadget reports, the plaintiff is alleging that Reddit’s lack of action violates the aforementioned FOSTA-SESTA, which is an amendment to the Communications Decency Act’s Section 230 that eliminates safe harbour protections from online services for sex trafficking content in the States.

The lawsuit also alleges that Reddit is fully aware of the state of sexually explicit content on its site, and has chosen to ignore the problem.

This is something that the platform has since denied, clarifying the steps it has taken in a statement to the The Verge, which first reported the story.

“Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) has no place on the Reddit platform. We actively maintain policies and procedures that don’t just follow the law, but go above and beyond it,” an unnamed spokesperson told the publication.

“We deploy both automated tools and human intelligence to proactively detect and prevent the dissemination of CSAM material. When we find such material, we purge it and permanently ban the user from accessing Reddit. We also take the steps required under law to report the relevant user(s) and preserve any necessary user data,” it added.

It remains to be seen how this lawsuit plays out, but its outcome could prove a watershed moment for Reddit, its moderators and wider community should it be fined to be in violation of FOSTA-SESTA.