Craigslist is a popular online classified advertisement platform that allows users to post listings for jobs, housing, goods, services, and more. Craigslist uses terms of service (ToS) that explicitly prohibit automated access to its website, including web scraping, without prior authorization.
3Taps was a company that aggregated data from various online sources, including Craigslist, and provided it to developers through an API.3Taps argued that the data it collected from Craigslist was publicly available and should be accessible for aggregation and redistribution.
Allegations and Arguments
- Craigslist claimed that 3Taps violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) by scraping its data without permission.
- 3Taps argued that it had Craigslist's authorization to access the listings. It claimed that Craigslist was a public website, so anyone, including 3Taps, always had authorization.
- 3Taps suggested that Craigslist had set restrictions on how 3Taps must use the data, rather than restricting 3Taps's access to the data altogether.
Judgement and Outcome
In 2013, a federal judge ruled in favor of Craigslist, granting a preliminary injunction against 3Taps. The injunction prevented 3Taps from scraping Craigslist's data. Later, in 2015, a settlement was reached between Craigslist and 3Taps, where 3Taps agreed to shut down its operations and transfer its assets.
- While data on the internet may seem publicly available, websites have the right to control access to and use of their data. Unauthorized scraping can be deemed as a violation of this right.
- The case highlights the importance of reviewing and respecting a website's terms of service. Craigslist's ToS explicitly prohibited web scraping, and the court upheld the validity of these terms.
- The judgment in this case set a precedent for the legality of web scraping, especially when it involves circumventing website terms of service. It underscores the need for companies to protect their data and for scrapers to operate within legal boundaries.
Naman Gupta
.svg)
.svg)
