Not necessarily. This will depend on how you engage and the tenor and quality of your interactions with people online. In general it is always a good idea to engage respectfully and thoughtfully. In general, it is a good idea to avoid pejorative language or demeaning others and to engage with other people’s ideas and opinions rather than attacking the person behind them. Heated and unhelpful arguments that remain posted online only invite further unhelpful speech and can be a risk when it comes to defamation and vilification claims.

The law concerning liability for statements on social media is a developing area. There are some recent decisions that suggest that you can be held responsible as the publisher of third-party comments on social media pages that you control and can moderate. It can be a risk to let free and open debate play out on your social media page without any oversight and moderation of comments.