{"id":15975,"date":"2025-10-22T23:36:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-22T23:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/reddit-launches-legal-action-to-block-ai-companies-from-scraping-its-data\/"},"modified":"2025-10-22T23:36:00","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T23:36:00","slug":"reddit-launches-legal-action-to-block-ai-companies-from-scraping-its-data","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/reddit-launches-legal-action-to-block-ai-companies-from-scraping-its-data\/","title":{"rendered":"#\n                Reddit Launches Legal Action to Block AI Companies from Scraping its Data"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 eztoc-toggle-hide-by-default' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/reddit-launches-legal-action-to-block-ai-companies-from-scraping-its-data\/#Reddit_Launches_Legal_Action_to_Block_AI_Companies_from_Scraping_its_Data\" >Reddit Launches Legal Action to Block AI Companies from Scraping its Data<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Reddit_Launches_Legal_Action_to_Block_AI_Companies_from_Scraping_its_Data\"><\/span>\n                Reddit Launches Legal Action to Block AI Companies from Scraping its Data<br \/>\n            <span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>With Reddit looking to maximize its revenue potential, and capitalize on the value of its data, it\u2019s now <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/10\/22\/technology\/reddit-data-scrapers-perplexity-theft.html\" style=\"color:#0563c1\">taking legal action<\/a> against AI projects that look to siphon off its info without explicit permission.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>As reported by <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/10\/22\/technology\/reddit-data-scrapers-perplexity-theft.html\" style=\"color:#0563c1\">The New York Times<\/a>, Reddit has <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><span><span>filed a new lawsuit in the U.S. District Court, which seeks to block four different companies from scraping Reddit data via Google search results, as opposed to using (and paying for) the Reddit API.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span>As reported by <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/10\/22\/technology\/reddit-data-scrapers-perplexity-theft.html\" style=\"color:#0563c1\">NYT<\/a>:<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><em><span><span>\u201cThree of those companies &#8211; SerpApi; a Lithuanian start-up, Oxylabs; and a Russian company, AWMProxy\u00a0&#8211;\u00a0sold data to AI companies like OpenAI and Meta, according to the lawsuit. The fourth company, Perplexity, is a San Francisco start-up that makes an AI search engine.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Reddit\u2019s seeking a permanent injunction against these companies, along with financial damages, while it also hopes that the case will help to establish more solid legal precedent for data protection.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Which, from a business perspective, makes a lot of sense.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Reddit increased its API charges in 2023, in order to ensure that it\u2019s able to profit from the data its users generate, as more and more AI projects looked to Reddit for their data inputs.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Reddit\u2019s human-curated topical message boards contain vast insight and knowledge, so much so that it\u2019s now the most commonly referenced source for AI responses.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Within that, AI projects also see the opportunity to use Reddit chats as reference data to help fuel their tools, and Reddit\u2019s implemented various measures to ensure that its info can\u2019t be scraped, nor legally used, without explicit permission and payment. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Reddit alleges that these providers subverted its terms by scraping Reddit answers from Google instead, which is another loophole in its data protections, that Reddit\u2019s now hoping to close off with this legal push.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>And given the value of Reddit data, it\u2019s worth the effort. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Reddit posted a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2025\/07\/31\/reddit-revenue-soars-as-it-bets-on-ai-and-advertising\/\" style=\"color:#0563c1\">24% year-over-year increase in its \u201cOther\u201d revenue category in Q2<\/a>, largely based on its data deals with AI projects, with the company generating <\/span><\/span><span><span><span>$35 million for the quarter from this element.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>Reddit has signed content licensing agreements with Google and OpenAI, among others, yet in order to maximize the potential of its data offerings, it needs to ensure that there\u2019s value in exclusivity, in order to incentivize others to pay for such.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Which is why this legal push makes sense, and it could help Reddit, and other social media platforms, establish more solid legal footing to combat scraping in future.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Because AI projects need data, and social platforms are among the key sources on this front. And with billions at stake, you can bet that every platform will be assessing their options, in order to fend off unauthorised use.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Both LinkedIn and Meta have also launched legal action against scrapers, while Elon Musk\u2019s X has also <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2023\/04\/19\/musk-threatens-to-sue-microsoft-over-twitter-data-being-used-in-ai.html\" style=\"color:#0563c1\">threatened legal recourse<\/a> against anybody looking to steal its data as well. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>It looks set to become a lucrative battleground for lawyers moving forward, as the growth of AI tools necessitates further cases on this front. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/social-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" >Social Media<\/a><\/span> category.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.socialmediatoday.com\/news\/reddit-launches-legal-action-against-ai-data-scrapers\/803572\/\" target=\"_blank\" >Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Reddit Launches Legal Action to Block AI Companies from Scraping its Data With Reddit looking to maximize its revenue potential, and capitalize on the value of its data, it\u2019s now taking legal action against AI projects that look to siphon off its info without explicit permission. As reported by The New York Times, Reddit has&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15976,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/imgproxy.divecdn.com\/gQj5LBlEmS94Ss97g9szwCsjkXqrgw3FUuzcLxj1Q0g\/g:ce\/rs:fit:770:435\/Z3M6Ly9kaXZlc2l0ZS1zdG9yYWdlL2RpdmVpbWFnZS9yZWRkaXRfbG9nbzIuanBn.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[1456],"class_list":["post-15975","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-media","tag-social-media-updates"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15975","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15975"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15975\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15976"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yohrt.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}