Meta for the first time disclosed the prevalence of bullying and harassment on Facebook. Such content was seen 14/15 times per 10,000 views in the third quarter, said the social media giant in a blog post. Meta is identifying types of bullying and harassment with the help of artificial intelligence systems.
Meta also said that it identified bullying and harassment-related content 5/6 times per 10,000 views of content on Instagram. Additionally, Meta said that it removed:
- 9.2 million pieces of such content from Facebook
- 7.8 million pieces of such content from Instagram
This comes at a time when the social media giant is facing scrutiny over the handling of abuse on its platforms. Facebook rebranded to Meta following recent revelations made first by the Wall Street Journal and now by a consortium of publications based on leaked company documents shared by employee-turned-whistleblower Frances Haugen.
How is Meta approaching bullying and harassment?
Meta said that:
- Prevalence metrics allow it to track both internally and externally how much violating content is being seen on Meta’s platforms.
- It has updated its AI technology to train across three different but related violations: bullying and harassment, hate speech and violence and incitement.
- It shows warning screens on Facebook and Instagram to educate and discourage people from posting or commenting in ways that could be ascertained as bullying or harassment.
Recognizing that not everyone in the public eye chooses to become a public figure and yet can still be on the receiving end of significant bullying and harassment, we’ve increased protections for involuntary public figures like human rights defenders and journalists — Meta
Other features in place that help in protecting users against bullying and harassment, according to Meta, are —
- Tools like unfriending, unfollowing, and blocking accounts
- Features like ignore and comment controls
- People can also control who tags or mentions them in content
- Limits on Instagram that automatically hide comments
What are the problems faced while identifying such content?
..Bullying and harassment is a unique issue area because determining harm often requires context, including reports from those who may experience this behavior. It can sometimes be difficult for our systems to distinguish between a bullying comment and a light-hearted joke without knowing the people involved or the nuance of the situation — Meta
Meta gave the example of a woman posting “hi slut” on another female friend’s profile. “…That may not be perceived as bullying between those close friends. But on the other hand, someone posting that on another person’s page when the two are not close friends or several people posting “hi slut” on that person’s page can be harmful,” Meta said while adding that terms related to sexual activity, like “slut,” violate its Community Standards for bullying and harassment.
Facebook has done little to contain harmful content: Whistleblower
This disclosure comes weeks after former Facebook employee-turned whistleblower Frances Haugen filed eight complaints against the social media giant based on thousands of internal Facebook documents that were secretly copied by Haugen before she left the company, CBS News had reported. One of the complaints was regarding how Facebook had allegedly not done much to contain “harmful” content on the platform.
Facebook, in an excerpt of an internal document, also took cognisance of the fact that it is responsible for the hate being spread on the platform. The document said, “Actively ranking content in news feed and promoting content on recommendations…makes us responsible for any harm caused by exposure to that content…we are responsible for harmful experiences on any surface where we actively present content… Accounts of 99% of multiple offenders for spreading hate and misinformation remain active, and some of them have passed dozens of authenticity checks.”
Also Read:
- Into The Metaverse — A Primer On The Future State Of The Internet
- The Lowdown On Google’s “Alphabet” Restructuring; Sundar Pichai Now CEO Of Google
- Facebook’s Failure To Check Hate Speech In India Spurs Demand For An Investigation
- Inflammatory Content Targeted Muslims On Facebook, WhatsApp Ahead Of Delhi Riots: Internal Records
- Summary: All Eight Complaints Made By Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen
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