The women—who said they survived sex trafficking on Backpage.com, which permanently closed in April 2018—sued Salesforce on Tuesday. They allege the company knowingly helped Backpage market sex workers to “pimps, johns and traffickers who had been underusing its trafficking services.” According to the complaint, Backpage resurged after its stagnation in 2013, helped by the tools Salesforce provided it with. Salesforce declined to comment on the suit. “We are deeply committed to the ethical and humane use of our products,” said a spokesperson in a statement to Bloomberg. (Bloomberg)

Talking point: Salesforce’s choice in clientele has triggered controversy in the past—in June 2018, more than 650 employees signed a letter calling to end the company’s contract with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which co-CEO Marc Benioff refused to do. The company is known for its liberal political activism; it’s helping sponsor an anti-human trafficking event in April. This case could set a precedent on whether the content creator or the platform that hosts it is responsible for harmful content—an issue that’s largely been focused on online platforms, but could extend to those providing software to them, as well.