Meta documents show 100,000 children sexually harassed daily on its platforms (www.theguardian.com)
from throws_lemy@lemmy.nz to technology@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 01:06
https://lemmy.nz/post/5715100

#technology

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autotldr@lemmings.world on 19 Jan 2024 01:10 next collapse

This is the best summary I could come up with:


Meta estimates about 100,000 children using Facebook and Instagram receive online sexual harassment each day, including “pictures of adult genitalia”, according to internal company documents made public late Wednesday.

The unsealed legal filing includes several allegations against the company based on information the New Mexico attorney general’s office received from presentations by Meta employees and communications between staff.

The filing is the latest in a lawsuit initiated by the New Mexico attorney general’s office on 5 December, which alleges Meta’s social networks have become marketplaces for child predators.

Meta issued a statement in response to Wednesday’s filing: “We want teens to have safe, age-appropriate experiences online, and we have over 30 tools to support them and their parents.

In a July 2020 internal Meta chat, one employee asked: “What specifically are we doing for child grooming (something I just heard about that is happening a lot on TikTok)?” According to the complaint, he received a response: “Somewhere between zero and negligible.”

Yet, an internal 2017 email describes executive opposition to scanning Facebook Messenger for “harmful content” because it would place the service “at a competitive disadvantage vs other apps who might offer more privacy”, the lawsuit states.


The original article contains 606 words, the summary contains 197 words. Saved 67%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!

Reverendender@sh.itjust.works on 19 Jan 2024 01:52 next collapse

These corporations are like honey badgers. They don’t give a shit as long as the profits keep increasing. I think I just dated myself.

[deleted] on 19 Jan 2024 01:57 next collapse

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thisbenzingring@lemmy.sdf.org on 19 Jan 2024 02:24 next collapse

When I was on facebook, many years ago, I was friends with my tween nieces. I wanted to stay a presence on their pages so that they would have someone to turn to if they had problems.

I CANNOT FUCKING TELL YOU HOW MANY PROBLEMS WERE HAD… JFK that place is a nightmare for young girls.

CultHero@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 08:16 collapse

It’s a nightmare for anyone who isn’t a straight white american male really.

TheGrandNagus@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 14:01 collapse

I imagine it’s a cesspit even for them, despite them not having to deal with the same problems that young girls do.

half_built_pyramids@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 02:34 next collapse

Rookie numbers, you gotta pump those numbers up

noodlejetski@lemm.ee on 19 Jan 2024 10:47 collapse

<img alt="" src="https://i.ibb.co/Xb77Yd4/don-t-have-to-be-edgy.jpg">

[deleted] on 19 Jan 2024 02:35 next collapse

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Kabaka@kbin.social on 19 Jan 2024 03:20 next collapse

Fair point, but we should celebrate any privacy wins we can get. That privacy is a consideration at all is a good start.

[deleted] on 19 Jan 2024 03:30 collapse

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Zink@programming.dev on 19 Jan 2024 21:47 collapse

That’s exactly the problem. Facebook executives knew it could be a disadvantage to be invasive, but then their marketing research showed that was not a valid worry for their user base.

sour@kbin.social on 19 Jan 2024 02:36 next collapse

can stop saying facebook didn't do bad thing yet

Thcdenton@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 02:42 next collapse

Why the fuck are kids on Meta services?

Chozo@kbin.social on 19 Jan 2024 02:58 next collapse

Instagram is still decently big among GenZ for still-photo content.

Dra@lemmy.zip on 19 Jan 2024 09:43 next collapse

Gen z are mostly not children anymore. It’s Gen Alpha

CrayonMaster@midwest.social on 19 Jan 2024 12:16 collapse

No, Gen z covers people as young as 11 or 12, which is a good guess for “kids on Instagram”

ultra@feddit.ro on 19 Jan 2024 12:53 collapse

We mostly use it for stories, memes (including reels) and DMs

Source: I’m 13

jbk@discuss.tchncs.de on 19 Jan 2024 17:36 collapse

And already part of the fediverse? Great!

ultra@feddit.ro on 19 Jan 2024 21:22 collapse

Yup.

I post a bit too much on my plasmatrap account lol (@graphite@plasmatrap.com)

TheGrandNagus@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 13:59 collapse

Because Meta/Tiktok/others don’t effectively block them from their services, despite the illegality and knowing who is young and who isn’t, due to the insane amount of data they collect.

A Facebook exec a while ago literally said that kids are the best demographic to get hooked on your platform.

Zak@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 03:19 next collapse

It’s tempting to just pile on with “Meta bad” here as most of us believe that for a multitude of good reasons, but how would likely alternatives handle this better? Most of us on Lemmy are strongly in favor of encrypted messaging for example. As the article mentions, that makes monitoring by third parties impossible.

What if we got all the kids to come to the Fediverse instead of InstaTok? Would-be abusers would most certainly follow. Will Fediverse admins moderate for child safety better than corporate social platforms? Will teenagers want to stay on tightly-moderated servers?

I don’t think the solutions are as simple as “Meta should stop being shitty and care about the harm it enables”.

ABCDE@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 04:02 next collapse

It’s not our job to create solutions which they should have implemented years ago.

Zak@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 18:01 collapse

Those of us who are actively promoting the Fediverse might, however want to start thinking about how we’re going to handle the same problems as the Fediverse grows.

TrickDacy@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 04:57 next collapse

I really hate this trend of downplaying valid points by saying “X bad”, as if we need to lay out the argument against X, meta in this case, once again, or else we’re just being idiots arguing blindly. Meta is bad and pointing out that this is just another reason why is fine.

Isoprenoid@programming.dev on 19 Jan 2024 05:10 collapse

Will Fediverse admins moderate for child safety better than corporate social platforms?

Sure, you just turn features off.

Will teenagers want to stay on tightly-moderated servers?

Maybe not, but at least we could sleep at night. Meta, on the other hand, sleeps at night on a big pile of money.

skweetis@kbin.social on 19 Jan 2024 03:20 next collapse

I love the line about "we have 30 tools for [preventing this thing that keeps happening from happening] ". It's marketing-speak all the way down. Like, wow! Thirty tools!

GigglyBobble@kbin.social on 19 Jan 2024 05:44 collapse

Apparently, it's just 30 failed approaches of the same tool.

bionicjoey@lemmy.ca on 19 Jan 2024 03:38 next collapse

Statistically speaking, that means a child gets sexually harassed on Facebook every 0.864 seconds.

Neon@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 07:43 collapse

on Facebook or Instagram or any other Meta Platform

stratosfear@lemmy.sdf.org on 19 Jan 2024 07:22 next collapse

But do they have cred?

MistressKitty@pawb.social on 19 Jan 2024 08:46 collapse

Maybe they need to get a backpack with a drink holder on the outside, so people can see their cred?

bartolomeo@suppo.fi on 19 Jan 2024 07:23 next collapse

I wonder how they got that 100,000 number. Does Meta see the messages sent over their platforms?

Neon@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 07:42 next collapse

yes, absolutely they do.

Tyfud@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 08:09 next collapse

They store them in a database. Yes, they absolutely see them.

bartolomeo@suppo.fi on 19 Jan 2024 12:07 collapse

Wait so they see them and proceed to do nothing about it? What’s the point of being able to see the messages then?

ultra@feddit.ro on 19 Jan 2024 12:51 next collapse

Targeted ads

isles@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 13:55 next collapse

Tech companies have learned that it behooves them to collect as much data as they can, even if they don’t have a present use for it. And with AI being so data-hungry, it appears to be paying off.

TheGrandNagus@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 14:02 collapse

✨ targeted ads ✨

nutsack@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 10:25 next collapse

you can send yourself pictures of your butthole and they have to look at it

bartolomeo@suppo.fi on 19 Jan 2024 12:07 collapse

Lifehack from nutsack

snek@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 12:46 collapse

Once upon a time I sent my then boyfriend a nude on Facebook in a private message. An hour later my account got locked, I had to provide an ID card and prove my identity… Mind you, my profile looks normal and active, 80% of my friends where people in my city that I’d met personally, very few of those accounts had like fake names or nick names. My ex swears he did not report it.

After showing my ID, they unlocked my account. I was at work and a picture of my boobs pops up on that screen with Facebook asking me if that’s the image I sent 😬 totally automated, except for the ID identification.

My only conclusion is that a system screened my personal conversation between me and my own then boyfriend.

Pons_Aelius@kbin.social on 19 Jan 2024 12:57 collapse

a nude on Facebook in a private message

A private message on fb is still visible and scanned by fb. It is only private in the sense that asking your parents to give a nude pic to your boyfriend is private. The public cannot see it but the delivery service definitely can.

CultHero@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 08:13 next collapse

I fucking hate all meta platforms now. I’ve been on Facebook since the day it went public (allowing anyone to join instead of just college students) and it’s just a nazi recruitment platform now. There is not accountability for bad behaviour, in fact they reward trolls and punish people for dairing to defend themselves.

If I’m harrassed it doesn’t go against community standards but if I defend myself I get banned for 30 days for bullying.

It’s fucked up and it’s deliberate. I’ve actually gotten a ban for two emojis 🐓🍭 got me a ban but bigotry and hate speech are a ok. Ironically even Jewish people aren’t safe on meta platforms. Antisemitic behaviour is rampant, even way before the Gaza war so its not people who give a shit about Palestine.

snek@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 12:42 next collapse

Cock lollipop? What am I missing here?

Nelots@lemm.ee on 19 Jan 2024 12:46 next collapse

Cocksucker I’d imagine

snek@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 12:47 next collapse

Oh. 🤣

CultHero@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 16:45 collapse

Yep

nyctre@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 12:51 collapse

I agree, makes more sense to reverse the order

bramblepatchmystery@slrpnk.net on 19 Jan 2024 22:40 next collapse

I don’t know, man, if you got banned from Facebook for calling somebody a cocksucker, it sounds like they are trying to hold right wingers accountable.

CultHero@lemmy.world on 20 Jan 2024 09:28 collapse

No, they really aren’t. You can’t go onto any page run by or made for a minority group without constant nazi level hate and yet Facebook does nothing. If however you defend yourself you get banned for bullying. They enjoy causing harm to vulnerable communities because they like to make money and don’t care who gets hurt as long as ad revenue keeps rolling in.

They specifically have hate speech as a reportable offence and do absolutely zero about all forms of hate speech. I’ve reported people calling others f××××× and they’ve done nothing. I don’t even think they believe n××××× is offensive.

bramblepatchmystery@slrpnk.net on 20 Jan 2024 16:43 collapse

You didn’t get the joke.

You are complaining that meta refuses to ban bigots, but aknowledge you arent allowed on the site for calling people cocksuckers.

[deleted] on 20 Jan 2024 09:48 collapse

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[deleted] on 20 Jan 2024 10:23 collapse

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BigMacHole@lemm.ee on 19 Jan 2024 16:53 next collapse

It’s a GOOD thing those platforms are mainly used by Republicans nowadays! SURELY they’ll put an end to it right? Republicans aren’t sexually harassing children right?

DragonTypeWyvern@literature.cafe on 20 Jan 2024 14:51 next collapse

Instagram and Facebook aren’t Republican things. They’re normal people things.

DudeDudenson@lemmings.world on 20 Jan 2024 16:58 collapse

Surely absolutely everything in life is about political bipartism!

And009@lemmynsfw.com on 20 Jan 2024 17:02 collapse

What makes you say that?

SouravSatvaya@lemmy.world on 19 Jan 2024 18:39 next collapse

Now they should shut down those spy apps, I mean social media apps.

Randomgal@lemmy.ca on 20 Jan 2024 17:48 collapse

“35 years ago” Sure buddy, AOL must have been terrible for you.