A United Nations-backed initiative working with technology giants such as Facebook, Google and Twitter has warned the Australian government’s tough new laws enacted after the Christchurch terrorist attacks to force digital companies to remove extremely violent content from the web may result in an overcorrection which undermines human rights and free speech.

Tech Against Terrorism, a public-private partnership supported by the US helping global tech tackle online terrorist activity, said the short timeframe for removing content creates “dangerous incentives” for tech companies to remove content to avoid liability and harsh penalties.