Discord suspended livestreams in Brazil on Monday following a public backlash over the death of a 13-year-old girl who was allegedly coerced by other users into killing herself during a livestream on the platform in July. The incident took place in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul.
Brazil's national agency of data protection ordered the suspension last week. The U.S.-based company said it was in conversations with Brazilian authorities to seek a solution that would allow it to restore those features for Brazilian users.
According to CBS News, the agency cited robust evidence that Discord had not sufficiently prevented exposure to content representing serious violations of children's rights. "Livestreams have been repeatedly used to facilitate violence, harassment and the incitement of self-harm and suicide," the agency said in a statement.
The agency said it found evidence that the company had not done enough to prevent risks of exposure to content that "represent serious violations of the rights of children and adolescents within its service, especially inducement, incitement, instigation, or assistance to violence, self-harm, and suicide."
Brazil's first lady Rosângela Lula da Silva, known as Janja, called for the platform to be taken offline entirely. She made the remarks at a ceremony in Brasilia on August 6, during which President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva signed a law increasing punishment for sexual violence against children and adolescents. "I can't accept seeing a 13-year-old girl self-harming live on the internet, on Discord, hanging herself and dying," Janja said at the ceremony.
Five teenagers were arrested in connection with the death, according to an August 4 statement from Brazil's justice ministry.
Discord denied that the July incident was shown live. In a statement, the company said groups or individuals who promote or encourage violence have no place on the platform. It said it had investigated a private server connected to the case and shut it down before the girl's death. Discord has more than 90 million active daily users worldwide.
Brazil's government under President Lula da Silva and the country's Supreme Court have been working to regulate internet use by minors, with mixed results. Similar efforts are underway in Australia, Canada and Indonesia.
Discord said it remained committed to working with Brazilian policymakers. "We remain committed to working with public policymakers in Brazil to help create an online experience that is safer for all, on Discord and across the internet," the platform said.
