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Facebook Outlines New Measures to Better Detect and Remove Child Exploitation Material

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facebook outlines new measures to better detect and remove child exploitation material

Facebook has announced some new measures to better detect and remove content that exploits children, including updated warnings, improved automated alerts and new reporting tools.

Facebook says that it recently conducted a study of all the child exploitative content it had previously detected and reported to authorities, in order to determine the reasons behind such sharing, with a view to improving its processes. Their findings showed that many instances of such sharing were not malicious in intent, yet the damage caused by such is still the same, and still poses a significant risk.

Based on this, it’s now improved its policies, and added new, variable alerts to deter such behavior.

The first new alert is a pop-up that will be shown to people who search for terms commonly associated with child exploitation.

As explained by Facebook:

“The pop-up offers ways to get help from offender diversion organizations and shares information about the consequences of viewing illegal content.”

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Facebook child exploitation warning

This is designed to address incidents where users may not be aware that the content they’re sharing is illegal, and could pose a risk to the child or children involved.

The second alert type is more serious, informing people who have shared child exploitative content about the harm it can cause, while also explicitly outlining Facebook’s policies on, and penalties for such.

Facebook child exploitation warning

“We share this safety alert in addition to removing the content, banking it and reporting it to NCMEC. Accounts that promote this content will be removed. We are using insights from this safety alert to help us identify behavioral signals of those who might be at risk of sharing this material, so we can also educate them on why it is harmful and encourage them not to share it on any surface – public or private.”

Those learnings could be critical in developing the next advance in its detection and deterrent tools, while also providing clear and definitive warnings to current offenders.

Facebook has also updated its child safety policies in order to clarify its rules and enforcement around not only the material itself, but also contextual engagement:

“We will remove Facebook profiles, Pages, groups and Instagram accounts that are dedicated to sharing otherwise innocent images of children with captions, hashtags or comments containing inappropriate signs of affection or commentary about the children depicted in the image. We’ve always removed content that explicitly sexualizes children, but content that isn’t explicit and doesn’t depict child nudity is harder to define. Under this new policy, while the images alone may not break our rules, the accompanying text can help us better determine whether the content is sexualizing children and if the associated profile, Page, group or account should be removed.”

Facebook has also improved its user reporting flow for such violations, which will also see such reports prioritized for review.

Facebook child exploitation warning

This is one of the most critical areas of focus for Facebook. With almost 3 billion users, it’s inevitable that there will be criminal elements looking to use and abuse its systems for their own purposes, and Facebook needs to ensure that it’s doing all it can to detect and protect younger people from predatory activity.

On a related front, Facebook has come under significant scrutiny in recent times over its plan to offer message encryption by default across all of its messaging apps, which child welfare advocates say will enable exploitation rings to utilize its tools, beyond the reach and enforcement of authorities. Various Government representatives have joined calls to block Facebook from shifting to encryption models, or to have the company work with law enforcement to provide ‘back door’ access as an alternative, and that could end up being another court challenge for Facebook to contend with in the coming months. 

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Last year, the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) reported that Facebook was responsible for 94% of the 69 million child sex abuse images reported by US technology companies. The figures underline the need for increased action on this front, and while these new measures from Facebook are critically important, it’s clear that more needs to be done to address the potential concerns associated with message encryption and the capacity for such content to be used to detect offenders.

Socialmediatoday.com

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Snapchat Explores New Messaging Retention Feature: A Game-Changer or Risky Move?

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Snapchat Explores New Messaging Retention Feature: A Game-Changer or Risky Move?

In a recent announcement, Snapchat revealed a groundbreaking update that challenges its traditional design ethos. The platform is experimenting with an option that allows users to defy the 24-hour auto-delete rule, a feature synonymous with Snapchat’s ephemeral messaging model.

The proposed change aims to introduce a “Never delete” option in messaging retention settings, aligning Snapchat more closely with conventional messaging apps. While this move may blur Snapchat’s distinctive selling point, Snap appears convinced of its necessity.

According to Snap, the decision stems from user feedback and a commitment to innovation based on user needs. The company aims to provide greater flexibility and control over conversations, catering to the preferences of its community.

Currently undergoing trials in select markets, the new feature empowers users to adjust retention settings on a conversation-by-conversation basis. Flexibility remains paramount, with participants able to modify settings within chats and receive in-chat notifications to ensure transparency.

Snapchat underscores that the default auto-delete feature will persist, reinforcing its design philosophy centered on ephemerality. However, with the app gaining traction as a primary messaging platform, the option offers users a means to preserve longer chat histories.

The update marks a pivotal moment for Snapchat, renowned for its disappearing message premise, especially popular among younger demographics. Retaining this focus has been pivotal to Snapchat’s identity, but the shift suggests a broader strategy aimed at diversifying its user base.

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This strategy may appeal particularly to older demographics, potentially extending Snapchat’s relevance as users age. By emulating features of conventional messaging platforms, Snapchat seeks to enhance its appeal and broaden its reach.

Yet, the introduction of message retention poses questions about Snapchat’s uniqueness. While addressing user demands, the risk of diluting Snapchat’s distinctiveness looms large.

As Snapchat ventures into uncharted territory, the outcome of this experiment remains uncertain. Will message retention propel Snapchat to new heights, or will it compromise the platform’s uniqueness?

Only time will tell.

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Catering to specific audience boosts your business, says accountant turned coach

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Catering to specific audience boosts your business, says accountant turned coach

While it is tempting to try to appeal to a broad audience, the founder of alcohol-free coaching service Just the Tonic, Sandra Parker, believes the best thing you can do for your business is focus on your niche. Here’s how she did just that.

When running a business, reaching out to as many clients as possible can be tempting. But it also risks making your marketing “too generic,” warns Sandra Parker, the founder of Just The Tonic Coaching.

“From the very start of my business, I knew exactly who I could help and who I couldn’t,” Parker told My Biggest Lessons.

Parker struggled with alcohol dependence as a young professional. Today, her business targets high-achieving individuals who face challenges similar to those she had early in her career.

“I understand their frustrations, I understand their fears, and I understand their coping mechanisms and the stories they’re telling themselves,” Parker said. “Because of that, I’m able to market very effectively, to speak in a language that they understand, and am able to reach them.” 

“I believe that it’s really important that you know exactly who your customer or your client is, and you target them, and you resist the temptation to make your marketing too generic to try and reach everyone,” she explained.

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“If you speak specifically to your target clients, you will reach them, and I believe that’s the way that you’re going to be more successful.

Watch the video for more of Sandra Parker’s biggest lessons.

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Instagram Tests Live-Stream Games to Enhance Engagement

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Instagram Tests Live-Stream Games to Enhance Engagement

Instagram’s testing out some new options to help spice up your live-streams in the app, with some live broadcasters now able to select a game that they can play with viewers in-stream.

As you can see in these example screens, posted by Ahmed Ghanem, some creators now have the option to play either “This or That”, a question and answer prompt that you can share with your viewers, or “Trivia”, to generate more engagement within your IG live-streams.

That could be a simple way to spark more conversation and interaction, which could then lead into further engagement opportunities from your live audience.

Meta’s been exploring more ways to make live-streaming a bigger consideration for IG creators, with a view to live-streams potentially catching on with more users.

That includes the gradual expansion of its “Stars” live-stream donation program, giving more creators in more regions a means to accept donations from live-stream viewers, while back in December, Instagram also added some new options to make it easier to go live using third-party tools via desktop PCs.

Live streaming has been a major shift in China, where shopping live-streams, in particular, have led to massive opportunities for streaming platforms. They haven’t caught on in the same way in Western regions, but as TikTok and YouTube look to push live-stream adoption, there is still a chance that they will become a much bigger element in future.

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Which is why IG is also trying to stay in touch, and add more ways for its creators to engage via streams. Live-stream games is another element within this, which could make this a better community-building, and potentially sales-driving option.

We’ve asked Instagram for more information on this test, and we’ll update this post if/when we hear back.

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