Our Commitment to Safety
Our Commitment to Safety
Facebook BusinessOur commitment to giving people a voice remains paramount, and for people to express themselves, they need to know they are safe. That’s why we have rules to determine what is and what isn’t allowed on our platforms.
Over the years, we’ve made a number of changes to help ensure that communities are safe, civically-engaged, supportive, informed and inclusive. We have a multi-faceted approach to safety that focuses on three key areas:
- Create a Safe and Welcoming Community: Our goal is to protect people from harm and give them more control over their privacy, data and the content they see. We take our role in keeping harmful content off our platforms seriously and our Community Standards outline what is and is not allowed on Facebook and Instagram.
- Maintain a High Quality Ecosystem: We work to maintain a high-quality ecosystem of content, publishers and ads, including by setting standards like our Partner Monetization Policies and Content Monetization Policies. Only publishers that agree to comply with our policies can show ads. Advertisers continually request more controls and transparency into where ads have shown up and will show up. Brand safety controls are available for placements within publisher content, such as in-stream, Instant Articles or Audience Network.
- Collaborate Proactively and Collectively with the Industry: We work with industry bodies and other tech platforms to share knowledge, build consensus and help make all platforms safer for people and advertisers. As an example, we have come together through the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), a global collaboration with agencies, media companies, platforms and industry associations, to continue to improve digital safety.
Our Commitments Going Forward
Safety is essential to the advertiser community. We remain committed to auditing and providing more transparency on measurement of violations and those controls we provide. We'll continue to add to this post as we announce updates. Here is a look at our progress to date:
202020192018201720162020
Originally published August 11, 2020
Sixth Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q2 2020
We released our sixth Community Standards Enforcement Report — the first in our quarterly cadence. Read the full post.
Originally published August 11, 2020
Update on How We Review Content
We explained how the role of technology has changed in content moderation, as it continues to improve and play a larger role across proactive detection, automation and prioritization. Together, these three aspects of technology have transformed our content review process and greatly improved our ability to moderate content at scale. However, there are still areas where it’s critical for people to review. That’s why our content review system needs both people and technology to be successful. Read the full post.
Originally published August 11, 2020
Issue of Request for Proposal (RFP) for Community Standards Enforcement Report Audit
We are issuing an RFP to external auditors to conduct an independent audit of the metrics in our Community Standards Enforcement Report to validate that they are measured and reported correctly. Read the full post.
Originally published on July 20, 2020
Put “Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados” (LGPD) Data Protection Principles into Practice
We enhanced our product and tools to meet the requirements of LGPD and how it will impact people. Read the full post.
Originally published on July 8, 2020
Published The Final Civil Rights Audit Report
We published our third civil rights audit report — bringing to a close an independent two-year review of our policies and practices by noted civil liberties and civil rights expert Laura W. Murphy and Megan Cacace, partner in the civil rights law firm Relman Colfax, PLLC. Read the full post.
Originally published on July 1, 2020
Restricted Developer Access
We began removing developers’ access to data if someone hasn’t used the app in three months and put other restrictions on what kind of information apps can ask for. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 29, 2020
Announced Our Continued Investment in System Transparency
We announced how we’re making our systems more transparent through the Media Rating Council (MRC) audit, which will include (but not be limited to):
- An evaluation of the development and enforcement of our Partner Monetization Policies and Content Monetization Policies and how these policies enforce the 4A’s/GARM Brand Suitability Framework, and comply with MRC’s Standards for Brand Safety
- An assessment of our ability to apply brand safety controls to ads shown within publisher content and the accuracy of our available reporting in these areas
Originally published on June 26, 2020
Began Prohibiting Wider Category of Hateful Content in Ads, Labeling Newsworthy Content, Banning Voter Suppression
Originally published on June 25, 2020
Deepfake Detection Challenge Dataset
We partnered with other industry leaders and academic experts in September 2019 to create the Deepfake Detection Challenge (DFDC) in order to accelerate development of new ways to detect and prevent manipulated media. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 23, 2020
New EU Reports Finds Progress Fighting Hate Speech
According to this independent report, Facebook assessed 95.7% and Instagram assessed 91.8% of hate speech notifications in less than 24 hours, compared to 81.5% for YouTube and 76.6% for Twitter. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 16, 2020
Launched the Largest Voting Information and Registration Effort in US History
We launched the largest voting information and registration effort in US history with a goal to register 4 million people. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 16, 2020
Added U.S. House & Senate Ad Spend Tracker to the Ad Library
In addition to launching the largest voting information effort in US history, we added a new feature to the Ad Library, allowing you to track ad spending for US House and Senate races, in addition to spending for the candidates in the Presidential race. We’ll also offer a custom tracker to compare the spending of advertisers running political or issue ads. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 16, 2020
Expanded Transparency and More Controls for Political Ads
We added a new control that allows people to see fewer political and issue ads on Facebook and Instagram. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 11, 2020
Facebook, Google, Microsoft and 15 other Tech Companies Announced Formation of ‘Project Protect’ to Fight Child Exploitation Online
‘Project Protect: A plan to combat online child sexual abuse’ is a renewed commitment and investment from the Technology Coalition expanding its scope and impact to protect kids online and guide its work for the next 15 years. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 5, 2020
Monthly Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior (CIB) Report
For May, we removed two networks of accounts, Pages and Groups. One of them, from Tunisia, focused on countries across Francophone Africa, and the other one targeted domestic audiences in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 4, 2020
Introduced State-Controlled Media Labels
We started labeling state-controlled media on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published on May 28, 2020
Introduced High-Reach Post Verification
We began verifying the identity of people behind certain high-reach posts on Facebook in the US. Read the full post.
Originally published on May 12, 2020
Fifth Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q4 2019 and Q1 2020
The report introduced Instagram data across Hate Speech, Adult Nudity and Sexual Activity, Violent and Graphic Content, and Bullying and Harassment. We also added data on our efforts to combat organized hate on Facebook and Instagram. Read the full post.
Originally published on May 5, 2020
Monthly Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior (CIB) Takedown Report
For April, we removed eight networks of accounts, Pages and Groups. Two of them, from Russia and Iran, focused internationally (FGI), and the remaining six — in the US, Georgia, Myanmar and Mauritania — targeted domestic audiences in their respective countries (CIB). Read the full post.
Originally published on May 12, 2020
Expanded Availability of Brand Safety Controls - Content Allow Lists, Publisher Allow Lists and Delivery Reports
Timed with the Community Standard Enforcement Report (version five) on May 12, we announced expanded availability of brand safety controls including content whitelists (renamed content allow lists), publisher whitelists (renamed publisher allow lists) for Audience Network, delivery reports and live stream exclusion at the account level. Read the full post.
Originally published on April 23, 2020
Federal Court officially approved agreement with Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
FTC investigation that began after the events surrounding Cambridge Analytica in 2018 concluded with approval of agreement by the federal court. Read the full post.
Originally published on April 22, 2020
Added Location of High-Reach Facebook Page and Instagram Accounts
We started providing the location of high-reach Facebook Page and Instagram accounts with high US reach that are based outside of the US. Read the full post.
Originally published on April 16, 2020
Fact-Checking Program Reached 60+ Partner Organizations
Since COVID-19 was declared a public emergency, we have put warning labels on over 50 million pieces of content related to COVID with the help of over 60 fact-checking organizations from around the world. Read the full post.
Originally published on April 8, 2020
New Machine Learning Code Completeness Checklist and Reproducibility Challenge
Papers with Code, a free community-driven resource for machine learning (ML), introduced the ML Code Completeness Checklist to enhance reproducibility and provide a much-needed collection of best practices and code repository assessments, allowing users to build upon previously published work. Read the full post.
Originally published on April 2, 2020
March 2020 Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior Takedown Report
Originally published on April 1, 2020
Announced US Census Efforts Drove 11M People to Census Site
Originally published on March 18, 2020
Launched COVID-19 Information Center
Launched a new Coronavirus Information Center on Facebook to help people find accurate information and helpful resources. Read the full post.
Originally published March 12, 2020
Monthly Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior (CIB) Takedown
In March, we removed 49 Facebook accounts, 69 Pages and 85 Instagram accounts for engaging in foreign interference. Read the full post.
Originally published March 2, 2020
Started Publishing Information About All Networks We Take Down
We started publishing information about all networks we take down as part of regular CIB reports so people can see the progress we are making. Read the full post.
Originally published February 16, 2020
Community Standards Enforcement Report Audit Announcement
In we announced that we’re exploring opening up our content moderation systems for external audit. This separate third-party audit will be completed by a reputable firm and include the incidence of violating content. .
Originally published February 16, 2020
Launched Election Operations Center in US for all Primary Elections
We launched an Election Operations Center that brings together subject matter experts to monitor misinformation or abuse related to the election or census. Read the full post.
Originally published January 22, 2020
Marketing Leaders Take Action on Harmful Online Content
The Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) unveiled its strategy to create a more sustainable and responsible digital environment that protects consumers, the media industry and society. .
Originally published January 9, 2020
New Transparency Features and Controls for Social and Political Ads
We announced new transparency features and controls including Ad Library search and filtering and control over Custom Audiences from a list for ads about social issues, elections or politics. Read the full post.
Originally published January 6, 2020
Announced Policy to Take Down Misleading Manipulated Media
We strengthened policy around misleading manipulated videos and highlighted standards for removal of content. Read the full post.
2019
Originally published December 20, 2019
Removed Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior From Georgia, Vietnam and the US
Originally published December 19, 2019
Banned Census Interference - Civil Rights Audit Outcome
Originally published December 17, 2019
Helping Fact-Checkers Identify False Claims Faster
Announced a new pilot program that will help third-party fact-checking partners identify false claims faster. Read the full post.
Originally published December 16, 2019
Launched Fact-Checking of Instagram Content
We expanded our fact-checking program globally to allow fact-checking organizations around the world to assess and rate misinformation on our platform. Read the full post.
Originally published December 3, 2019
Expanded Enforcement of a Process to Prevent Discrimination in Ads that Offer Housing, Employment and Credit Opportunities and Launched Housing Ads in the Ad Library
Originally published November 20, 2019
Introduced New Brand Safety Controls for Advertisers
We announced our approach to brand safety and announced strides in our brand safety controls. We shared:
- A one-stop place in Business Manager or Ads Manager to create block lists, get delivery reports, and set an account-level inventory filter, rather than applying it one campaign at a time
- Improved delivery reports
- Dynamic content sets (renamed content allow lists), a content-level white listing tool for advertisers working with Integral Ad Science, OpenSlate, and Zefr
- Testing of publisher allow lists (previously named publisher whitelists) for Audience Network and in-stream ads on Facebook with select advertisers
Originally published November 13, 2019
Fourth Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q2 to Q3 2019
Originally published October 21, 2019
Increased Pages Transparency
We made Pages more transparent by showing the confirmed Page owner and labelled state-controlled media on their Page and in our Ad Library. We also made it easier to understand political ads, including a new US Presidential candidate spend tracker. Read the full post.
Originally published October 21, 2019
Updated Warnings on False Information
We updated warnings on false information, first rolled out in December 2017, to be clearer and more prominent. We launched Facebook Protect to give campaigns, elected officials, their staffs and others increased security protections. Read the full post.
Originally published October 21, 2019
Updated Inauthentic Behavior Policy
We updated our inauthentic behavior policy to clarify how we act against the spectrum of deceptive practices we see on our platform and to further improve our ability to counter new tactics and bad actors.
Read more about How We Respond to Inauthentic Behavior on Our Platforms: Policy Update and Helping to Protect the 2020 US Elections.
Originally published October 21, 2019
Expanded Policy Ban on ‘Useless’ Voting
We expanded our policy to ban ads that suggest voting is useless or meaningless, or advise people not to vote. Read the full post.
Originally published October 21, 2019
Launched Facebook Protect
We launched Facebook Protect to give campaigns, elected officials, their staffs and others increased security protections. Read the full post.
Originally published October 21, 2019
Added U.S. Presidential Ad Spend Tracker to the Ad Library
We added a Presidential ad spend tracker to the Ad Library. Read the full post.
Originally published October 17, 2020
Announced More Than 35,000 People Working on Safety and Security at Facebook
Originally published October 3, 2019
Introduced Instagram Restrict
Restrict is designed to empower people to quietly protect their account while still keeping an eye on a bully. Read the full post.
Originally published September 20, 2019
Began an Ongoing App Developer Investigation
We shared an update on the ongoing App Developer Investigation as part of our response to Cambridge Analytica to better understand patterns of abuse in order to root out bad actors among developers. Read the full post.
Originally published September 17, 2019
Shared an Update on Our Efforts to Combat Hate and Extremism
We shared a series of updates and shifts that improve how we combat terrorists, violent extremist groups and hate organizations on Facebook and Instagram. Read the full post.
Originally published August 28, 2019
Announced a Stricter Political Ad Authorization Process
We announced that organizations running social issue/political ads in the US now have to go through a stricter authorizations process, including providing information such as a Tax ID or FEC Committee ID number. Read the full post
Originally published August 26, 2019
New Process for Housing, Employment and Credit Ads in Ads Manager
We began requiring all advertisers based in the US or trying to reach audiences in the US to use our new process to buy housing, employment and credit opportunity ads. Read the full post.
Originally published August 20, 2019
Introduced Off Facebook Activity
We introduced Off-Facebook Activity, which lets people see a summary of the apps and websites that send Facebook information about their activity, and clear this information from their account if they want to, rolling out globally through 2020. Read the full post.
Originally published August 1, 2019
Open-Sourced Technology to Help Industry More Easily Identify Abusive Content
We open-sourced two technologies on GitHub to help our industry partners, smaller developers and non-profits more easily identify abusive content and digital fingerprints in nearly identical photos and videos. Read the full post.
Originally published July 24, 2019
FTC Agreement and Rigorous New Privacy Standards
We shared information about the settlement with the Federal Trade Commission and provided a comprehensive new framework for protecting people’s privacy. Read the full post.
Originally published July 2, 2019
Addressed Sensational Health Claims in News Feed Ranking
We began reducing the distribution of posts in News Feed that: contain exaggerated or sensational health claims and attempt to sell products or services based on health-related claims. Read the full post.
Originally published June 30, 2019
Published Second Update on Civil Rights Audit
Originally published June 25, 2019
Expanded Ads Authorization Process To More Advertisers Globally
Originally published June 18, 2019
Facebook Joined GARM
17 of the world’s leading advertisers, including Facebook, announced the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, an unprecedented, global collaboration with agencies, media companies and platforms, and industry associations to rapidly improve digital safety. .
Originally published June 14, 2019
Improved Public Comment Ranking in News Feed
We explained how we’re working to improve comment ranking on public posts and how Pages and people can control their own comment ranking settings. Read the full post.
Originally published May 23, 2019
Third Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q4 2018 to Q1 2019
We added data on how much content was appealed and restored, as well as data on regulated goods. Read the full post.
Originally published April 10, 2019
Introduced Brand Safety Inventory Filter
We transitioned from category exclusion blocking controls to a new inventory filter that provided advertisers simplified controls over where their ads appear. Read the full post.
Originally published April 10, 2019
Recapped Our Work to Reduce the Distribution of Problematic Content in News Feed
We reduced the distribution of problematic content in News Feed by responding to peoples’ feedback, incentivizing publishers to invest in high-quality content, and fostering a safe community. Read the full post.
Originally published March 28, 2019
Ad Library and Ads/Pages Transparency
We rolled out an improved Ad Library that brings together all ads on the platform. We also included a “Page Transparency” section within every Page. Read the full post.
Originally published March 27, 2019
Banned Praise, Support and Representation of White Nationalism and White Separatism content on Facebook and Instagram
Originally published March 19, 2019
Protections Against Discrimination in Housing, Employment and Credit Advertising
We announced changes in how we manage housing, employment and credit opportunity ads on our platform. These changes were the result of the historic settlement agreements with leading civil rights organizations and ongoing input from civil rights experts. Read the full post.
Originally published March 7, 2019
Began Combatting Vaccine Misinformation
Originally published February 7, 2019
Announced We Will Not Allow Graphic Images of Self-Harm on Instagram
Following a comprehensive review with global experts and academics on youth, mental health and suicide prevention, we announced we will not allow any graphic images of self-harm, such as cutting, on Instagram. We also focused on getting more resources to people posting and searching for self-harm related content and directing them to organizations that can help. Read the full post.
Originally published January 28, 2019
Released the Draft Charter for Oversight Board
Nick Clegg, Facebook’s VP of Global Affairs and Communications, shared a draft charter giving more detail about the potential make-up of an independent oversight board for how content should be governed and enforced on Facebook. .
Originally published January 28, 2019
Expanded Fact-Checking Program to Review Photos, Videos and Article Links (Europe and Asia)
We set up two new regional operations centers, focused on election integrity, in our Dublin and Singapore offices to further strengthen our coordination and response time between staff in Menlo Park and in-country.
We also continued to expand our third-party fact-checking program, which now covers content in 16 languages and also reviews photos, videos and article links. Read the full post.
Originally published January 27, 2019
Launched Privacy and Data Use Business Hub
We launched a new Privacy and Data Use Business Hub, which centralizes resources that businesses can use to understand how they can protect people’s information when using Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published January 23, 2019
Made Pages More Transparent and Accountable
We shared new steps we took to make Pages more transparent including updating our recidivism policy and showing a tab to admins when we remove content that violates our Community Standards. Read the full post.
2018
Originally published December 18, 2018
Laura Murphy Shared the First Update on our Civil Rights Audit
In response to the audit, we updated our policy to expressly ban misrepresentations about how to vote. Other misinformation related to voting, including false claims of polling place closures, long lines and wait times, is proactively sent to third-party fact-checkers for review. Read the full post.
Originally published November 19, 2018
Reduced Inauthentic Activity on Instagram
We began removing inauthentic likes, follows and comments from accounts that use third-party apps to boost their popularity. Read the full post.
Originally published November 15, 2018
Second Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q2 to Q3 2018
The second report showed our enforcement efforts on our policies against the original six areas (graphic violence, adult nudity and sexual activity, terrorist propaganda, hate speech, spam and fake accounts) from April 2018 to September 2018, as well as two new categories of data — Bullying and Harassment, and Child Nudity and Sexual Exploitation of Children. Read the full post.
Originally published November 8, 2018
Shared New Tactics We’re Using to Combat Terrorism
We included Q1, Q2, Q3 2018 enforcement data on terrorism, and talked about some of the new tactics we’re using to combat terrorism. Read the full post.
Originally published October 25, 2018
Launched Candidate Info - Hear From Your Candidate Directly
Originally published October 23, 2018
Rolled Out Ad Library Report
We rolled out the Ad Library report to make it easier to see who is running social issues/political ads on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published October 18, 2018
Elections Operations Center Opens
We opened our first physical Elections Operations Center for monitoring ahead of key elections. Read the full post.
Originally published October 15, 2018
Expanded Voter Suppression Policy and New Ways to Report Potential Suppression
We expanded voter suppression policies and announced new ways for users to report potential voter suppression. Read the full post.
Originally published October 9, 2018
New Anti-Bullying Tools on Instagram
We introduced a bullying comment filter to proactively detect and hide bullying comments from Feed, Explore and Profile, and on Live Videos. Read the full post.
Originally published October 2, 2018
New Anti-Bullying Tools on Facebook and Better Protection for Public Figures
We gave people more control over how people interact with their posts. We introduced a way for people to hide or delete multiple comments at once from the options menu of their post, and expanded our policies to guard against the harassment of young public figures on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published September 20, 2018
Published Demos Research on Youth Engagement Through Social Media
We commissioned independent think tank Demos to provide a detailed look at how social media shapes young people’s experiences online and their lives in the real world. Read the full post.
Originally published September 13, 2018
Expanded Fact-Checking to Photos and Videos
Originally published September 10, 2018
Shared Brand Safety Updates To Give New Visibility Into Ad Placements through Publisher Lists and Delivery Reports
We announced additional brand safety features that gave new visibility into ad placements through publisher lists and delivery reports on Facebook In-stream, Instant Articles and Audience Network. Read the full post.
Originally published August 28, 2018
New Tools to Keep Instagram Safe
We announced a new feature to help people evaluate the authenticity of accounts with large followings on Instagram. “About this Account” shows the date the account joined Instagram, the country where the account is located, accounts with shared followers, any username changes in the last year and any ads the account is currently running.
We also launched a global verification form within the Instagram app for notable public figures. To be verified with the blue badge, an account must comply with Instagram’s Terms of Service and Community Guidelines.
Originally published August 2, 2018
Launched Digital Literacy Library
We launched the Digital Literacy Library — a resource for educators looking to address digital literacy and help these young people build the skills they need to safely enjoy digital technology. Read the full post.
Originally published June 21, 2018
Increasing Our Efforts to Fight False News
We shared new updates in the fight against false news, including expanding our fact-checking program to new countries, expanding our test to fact-check photos and videos, increasing the impact of fact-checking by using new techniques, including identifying duplicates and using Claim Review, taking action against new kinds of repeat offenders, and improving measurement and transparency by partnering with academics. Read the full post.
Originally published June 28, 2018
Transparency in Ads Across Facebook
We allowed people to see the ads a Page is running across Facebook, Instagram and Messenger even if those ads aren’t shown to them. Read the full post.
Originally published May 2018
Accepted the Call to Undertake a Civil Rights Audit in the US
Originally published May 23, 2018
Launched New Tools to Support Group Admins and Keep Communities Safe
Originally published May 22, 2018
Launched the Ad Library
We launched the Ad Library (with social issue/political ads archived for seven years) and began requiring that advertisers running social issue/political ads confirm their location in the US and place “Paid for by” disclaimers on these ads. Read the full post.
Originally published May 15, 2018
First Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q4 2017 to Q1 2018
This report covers our enforcement efforts between October 2017 to March 2018, and it covers six areas: graphic violence, adult nudity and sexual activity, terrorist propaganda, hate speech, spam, and fake accounts. Read the full post.
Originally published May 17, 2018
Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab Partnership
We began partnership with the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab to study and investigate disinformation campaigns around the world, and continued to expand these external partnerships throughout 2018 and beyond. Read the full post.
Originally published April 24, 2018
Expanded Appeals Process for Content Decisions
We introduced appeals for some content that we may have mistakenly removed. Read the full post
Originally published April 24, 2018
Updated Community Standards to Include Internal Guidelines for Content Decisions
We updated our Community Standards to include internal guidelines used for decisions about content. Read the full post.
Originally published April 23, 2018
Update on Technology to Detect Terrorist Content
We took action on 1.9 million pieces of ISIS and Al Qaeda content. We found the vast majority of this content ourselves, with 99% removed before a user reported it. We also shared our definition of terrorist organizations for the first time. Read the full post.
Originally published April 9, 2018
Announced Election Research Commission
We announced the Election Research Commission to study social media’s role in elections. Read the full post.
Originally published April 6, 2018
Making the Ads and Pages More Transparent
We extended requirements that only authorized advertised can show “issue ads” like political topics that are being debated across the country, extending that requirement to anyone that wants to show “issue ads.”Read the full post.
Originally published April 3, 2018
Authenticity Matters: The IRA Has No Place On Facebook
We removed 70 Facebook and 65 Instagram accounts — as well as 138 Facebook Pages — that were controlled by the Russia-based Internet Research Agency (IRA). Read the full post.
Originally published March 28, 2018
Removed Partner Categories
We removed Partner Categories, which enabled third-party data providers to offer their targeting directly on Facebook, as part of our data protection efforts. Read the full post.
Originally published March 28, 2018
Made Our Privacy Tools Easier to Find
We redesigned our entire settings menu on mobile devices, launched a new Privacy Shortcuts menu and introduced Access Your Information – a secure way for people to access and manage their information. Read the full post.
Originally published March 21, 2018
Cracking Down on Platform Abuse
Mark Zuckerberg announced important steps to crack down on platform abuse, strengthening our policies, and making it easier for people to revoke apps’ ability to use user data. Read the full post.
Originally published March 16, 2018
Cambridge Analytica Suspension and Investigation
We suspended Strategic Communication Laboratories (SCL), including their political data analytics firm, Cambridge Analytica, from Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published March 16, 2018
Preparation for General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
We launched a new GDPR site to share updates on our own preparation efforts, and provide information on your data protection responsibilities as an advertiser on Facebook. View the site here.
Originally published January 28, 2018
Giving People More Privacy Control on Facebook
We introduced a new education campaign to help people understand how data is used on Facebook and shared our privacy principles for the first time. Read the full post.
Originally published January 19, 2018
News Feed Ranking: Helping Ensure News on Facebook is From Trusted Sources
We surveyed a diverse and representative sample of people using Facebook across the US to gauge their familiarity with, and trust in, various different sources of news. This data will help to inform ranking in News Feed. Read the full post.
2017
Originally published December 20, 2017
‘Related Articles’ Launch
We launched ‘Related Articles’ to give people more information on content rated false by third-party fact-checkers. Read the full post.
Originally published December 18, 2017
News Feed Ranking: Fighting Engagement Bait on Facebook
We reduced the distribution of spammy posts that got people into interacting with likes, shares, comments and other actions. Read the full post.
Originally published November 28, 2017
Are We Winning the War on Terrorism?
This is an update on our efforts against terrorism, sharing that 99% of the ISIS and Al Qaeda-related terror content we remove from Facebook is content we detect before anyone in our community has flagged it to us. Read the full post.
Originally published November 27, 2017
Published Our Advertising Principles
We outlined the principles that guide our decision making when it comes to advertising across Facebook, Messenger and Instagram. Read the full post.
Originally published October 27, 2017
New Political Ad Authorization Requirements
We announced new authorization requirements before advertisers can run ads about elections or politics on Facebook or Instagram. Read the full post.
Originally published October 5, 2017
Launched “About This Article”
We launched a new feature designed to provide people with some of the tools they need to make an informed decision about which stories to read, share and trust. Read the full post.
Originally published October 2, 2017
Improved Enforcement and Transparency of Ads on Facebook
WWe shared details about the updates we are putting in place and new steps to improve review and enforcement of ads and ad accounts. Read the full post.
Originally published September 21, 2017
Protecting Election Integrity
We shared the steps we're taking to protect election integrity and make sure that Facebook is a force for good in democracy. Read the full post.
Originally published September 21, 2017
Removed Accounts for Violating Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior Policy
We provided additional information on Russian ads. Read the full post.
Originally published September 14, 2017
Updated Ad Targeting to Prevent Potential Discrimination
Offensive education or employer fields manually entered were being shown as a targetable demographic. Self-reported targeting areas were removed. Read the full post
Originally published September 13, 2017
Introduced New Monetization Eligibility Standards
We introduced new monetization eligibility standards that provide guidance around the types of publishers and creators eligible to earn money on Facebook, and the kind of content that can be monetized. We launched pre-campaign reporting (later renamed publisher lists), and announced post-campaign reporting that identifies the publishers that ads ran on was coming in 2018.
We also shared an update on our work to achieve MRC accreditation. Read the full post.
Originally published September 6, 2017
Removed 470 Accounts in Russia for Violating Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior Policy
We identified ad buys originating from inauthentic accounts in Russia. We found approximately $100,000 in ad spending from June 2015 to May 2017 — associated with roughly 3,000 ads — that was connected to about 470 inauthentic accounts and Pages in violation of our policies. Read the full post.
Originally published August 28, 2017
Began Blocking Ads from Pages that Repeatedly Share False News
We announced that Pages that repeatedly share stories marked as false would no longer be allowed to advertise on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published August 22, 2017
Refined Our Hate Speech Policy
We refined our hate speech policy by introducing three different tiers/types of attacks, from most severe to least, with the goal of enabling more nuanced enforcement.
Originally published August 17, 2017
News Feed Ranking: Taking Action Against Video Clickbait
We made updates to our existing clickbait enforcements that would limit the spread of stories in News Feed that feature either fake video play buttons or videos only of a static image. Read the full post.
Originally published August 9, 2017
Addressing Cloaking
We shared that we use AI and human review to identify, capture and verify ads, posts and Pages that contain cloaking practices. We announced that we would ban advertisers or Pages found to be cloaking, so that what people see after clicking an ad or post matches their expectations. Read the full post.
Originally published June 30, 2017
News Feed Ranking: Showing More Informative Links in News Feed
We deprioritized links that are shared more frequently by spammers, to surface more stories that people find informative and reduce the spread of problematic links such as clickbait, sensationalism and misinformation. Read the full post.
Originally published June 29, 2017
Launched Instagram Offensive Comments Filter
We announced two new tools to help keep Instagram a safe place for self-expression – a filter to block certain offensive comments and a spam filter in nine languages. Read the full post.
Originally published June 27, 2017
Outlined Considerations in Defining Hate Speech and Added 3,000 Content Reviewers
We outlined the considerations in defining hate speech, including the need to consider the context and intent behind language. Read the full post.
Originally published June 26, 2017
Announced the Formation of the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism with Microsoft, Twitter and YouTube
We announced the formation of the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism in conjunction with Microsoft, Twitter and YouTube. Read the full post.
Originally published June 14, 2017
Announced New Features and Controls to Improve Brand Safety
We announced additional brand safety controls and made existing ones easier to use, including:
- Pre-campaign transparency: a complete list of publishers and places where ads could run in Audience Network, Instant Articles and in-stream video on Facebook.
- Domain and app blocking at the Business Manager account level.
- Audience Network video placement opt-out controls.
Originally published June 15, 2017
How We Counter Terrorism
We shared how we began to use technology to combat terrorism, in addition to building a team of counterterrorism specialists. Read the full post.
Originally published May 17, 2017
News Feed Ranking: Reducing Links to Low-Quality Web Page Experiences (Ad Farms)
Following 2016’s updates, we made further updates to News Feed so that people would see even fewer clickbait stories in their feeds, and more of the stories they find authentic. Read the full post.
Originally published April 27, 2017
Information Operations Whitepaper
We published a whitepaper about attempts by organized groups and individuals to promote misinformation, spread false news and obtain information about other people. Read the full post.
Originally published April 25, 2017
Related Articles Test
We began testing “Related Articles” that appear before reading an article shared in News Feed, providing people easier access to additional perspectives and information, including articles by third-party fact checkers. Read the full post.
Originally published April 6, 2017
Launched Fake News Tool
We announced a new tool to help people spot false news on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published February 8, 2017
Updated Our Anti-Discrimination Ads Policies
We introduced new steps to ensure there is no discriminatory advertising on Facebook by updating advertising policies, new advertiser education and stronger enforcement tools. Read the full post.
Originally published January 31, 2017
News Feed ranking: New Signals to Show More Authentic and Timely Stories
We announced new signals to identify authentic content and updates to real-time signals. Read the full post.
Originally published January 11, 2017
Announced The Facebook Journalism Project
We announced an effort to support quality journalism, improve news literacy and provide reporters and editors with tools and training to help them better tell their stories. Read the full post.
2016
Originally published December 15, 2016
Disrupted Financial Incentives for Spammers, Made it Easier to Report Hoaxes and Began Flagging Disputed Stories as False
We focused our efforts on the clear hoaxes spread by spammers for their own gain, and on engaging both our community and third party organizations. The work fell into the following areas:
- Made it easier to report a hoax
- Flagged stories as disputed if fact-checking organizations identified a story as fake and added a link to the corresponding article explaining why
- Disrupted financial incentives for spammers
Originally published December 15, 2016
Launched Third-Party Fact-Checking Program
We announced the third-party fact-checking program as well as easier reporting flows for hoaxes and additional steps to disrupt financial incentives for spammers. Read the full Newsroom post and Mark Zuckerberg’s update about misinformation.
Originally published December 5, 2016
Joined Cross-Industry Partnership to Fight Terrorist Content
We committed to the creation of a shared industry database of “hashes” — unique digital “fingerprints” — for violent terrorist imagery and videos that we removed from our services. By sharing this information with each other, we use the shared hashes to help identify potential terrorist content on our respective hosted consumer platforms to lead to greater efficiency. Read the full post.
Originally published November 11, 2016
Disabled Multicultural Affinity Marketing for Ads that Offer Housing, Employment, and Credit Opportunities, and Banned Discriminatory ‘Ethnic Marketing’ — Outcomes of Civil Rights Feedback
Originally published October 21, 2016
Began Allowing More Newsworthy Updates - Even if They Might Otherwise Violate Our Community Standards
We began allowing more items that people find newsworthy, significant or important to the public interest — even if they might otherwise violate our standards. Read the full post.
Originally published August 4, 2016
Further Reduced Clickbait in Feed
We announced efforts to identify and reduce clickbait headlines in feed. Read the full post.
Originally published June 29, 2016
News Feed Ranking Update
We announced an update to News Feed that helped people see more posts from friends and family. Read the full post.
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Announcements
August 11, 2020
Our Commitment to Safety
O
Over the years, we’ve made a number of changes to help ensure that communities are safe, civically-engaged, supportive, informed and inclusive. We have a multi-faceted approach to safety that focuses on three key areas:
- Create a Safe and Welcoming Community: Our goal is to protect people from harm and give them more control over their privacy, data and the content they see. We take our role in keeping harmful content off our platforms seriously and our Community Standards outline what is and is not allowed on Facebook and Instagram.
- Maintain a High Quality Ecosystem: We work to maintain a high-quality ecosystem of content, publishers and ads, including by setting standards like our Partner Monetization Policies and Content Monetization Policies. Only publishers that agree to comply with our policies can show ads. Advertisers continually request more controls and transparency into where ads have shown up and will show up. Brand safety controls are available for placements within publisher content, such as in-stream, Instant Articles or Audience Network.
- Collaborate Proactively and Collectively with the Industry: We work with industry bodies and other tech platforms to share knowledge, build consensus and help make all platforms safer for people and advertisers. As an example, we have come together through the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), a global collaboration with agencies, media companies, platforms and industry associations, to continue to improve digital safety.
Our Commitments Going Forward
Safety is essential to the advertiser community. We remain committed to auditing and providing more transparency on measurement of violations and those controls we provide. We'll continue to add to this post as we announce updates. Here is a look at our progress to date:
2020
Originally published August 11, 2020
Sixth Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q2 2020
We released our sixth Community Standards Enforcement Report — the first in our quarterly cadence. Read the full post.
Originally published August 11, 2020
Update on How We Review Content
We explained how the role of technology has changed in content moderation, as it continues to improve and play a larger role across proactive detection, automation and prioritization. Together, these three aspects of technology have transformed our content review process and greatly improved our ability to moderate content at scale. However, there are still areas where it’s critical for people to review. That’s why our content review system needs both people and technology to be successful. Read the full post.
Originally published August 11, 2020
Issue of Request for Proposal (RFP) for Community Standards Enforcement Report Audit
We are issuing an RFP to external auditors to conduct an independent audit of the metrics in our Community Standards Enforcement Report to validate that they are measured and reported correctly. Read the full post.
Originally published on July 20, 2020
Put “Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados” (LGPD) Data Protection Principles into Practice
We enhanced our product and tools to meet the requirements of LGPD and how it will impact people. Read the full post.
Originally published on July 8, 2020
Published The Final Civil Rights Audit Report
We published our third civil rights audit report — bringing to a close an independent two-year review of our policies and practices by noted civil liberties and civil rights expert Laura W. Murphy and Megan Cacace, partner in the civil rights law firm Relman Colfax, PLLC. Read the full post.
Originally published on July 1, 2020
Restricted Developer Access
We began removing developers’ access to data if someone hasn’t used the app in three months and put other restrictions on what kind of information apps can ask for. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 29, 2020
Announced Our Continued Investment in System Transparency
We announced how we’re making our systems more transparent through the Media Rating Council (MRC) audit, which will include (but not be limited to):
- An evaluation of the development and enforcement of our Partner Monetization Policies and Content Monetization Policies and how these policies enforce the 4A’s/GARM Brand Suitability Framework, and comply with MRC’s Standards for Brand Safety
- An assessment of our ability to apply brand safety controls to ads shown within publisher content and the accuracy of our available reporting in these areas
Originally published on June 26, 2020
Began Prohibiting Wider Category of Hateful Content in Ads, Labeling Newsworthy Content, Banning Voter Suppression
Originally published on June 25, 2020
Deepfake Detection Challenge Dataset
We partnered with other industry leaders and academic experts in September 2019 to create the Deepfake Detection Challenge (DFDC) in order to accelerate development of new ways to detect and prevent manipulated media. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 23, 2020
New EU Reports Finds Progress Fighting Hate Speech
According to this independent report, Facebook assessed 95.7% and Instagram assessed 91.8% of hate speech notifications in less than 24 hours, compared to 81.5% for YouTube and 76.6% for Twitter. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 16, 2020
Launched the Largest Voting Information and Registration Effort in US History
We launched the largest voting information and registration effort in US history with a goal to register 4 million people. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 16, 2020
Added U.S. House & Senate Ad Spend Tracker to the Ad Library
In addition to launching the largest voting information effort in US history, we added a new feature to the Ad Library, allowing you to track ad spending for US House and Senate races, in addition to spending for the candidates in the Presidential race. We’ll also offer a custom tracker to compare the spending of advertisers running political or issue ads. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 16, 2020
Expanded Transparency and More Controls for Political Ads
We added a new control that allows people to see fewer political and issue ads on Facebook and Instagram. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 11, 2020
Facebook, Google, Microsoft and 15 other Tech Companies Announced Formation of ‘Project Protect’ to Fight Child Exploitation Online
‘Project Protect: A plan to combat online child sexual abuse’ is a renewed commitment and investment from the Technology Coalition expanding its scope and impact to protect kids online and guide its work for the next 15 years. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 5, 2020
Monthly Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior (CIB) Report
For May, we removed two networks of accounts, Pages and Groups. One of them, from Tunisia, focused on countries across Francophone Africa, and the other one targeted domestic audiences in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Read the full post.
Originally published on June 4, 2020
Introduced State-Controlled Media Labels
We started labeling state-controlled media on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published on May 28, 2020
Introduced High-Reach Post Verification
We began verifying the identity of people behind certain high-reach posts on Facebook in the US. Read the full post.
Originally published on May 12, 2020
Fifth Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q4 2019 and Q1 2020
The report introduced Instagram data across Hate Speech, Adult Nudity and Sexual Activity, Violent and Graphic Content, and Bullying and Harassment. We also added data on our efforts to combat organized hate on Facebook and Instagram. Read the full post.
Originally published on May 5, 2020
Monthly Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior (CIB) Takedown Report
For April, we removed eight networks of accounts, Pages and Groups. Two of them, from Russia and Iran, focused internationally (FGI), and the remaining six — in the US, Georgia, Myanmar and Mauritania — targeted domestic audiences in their respective countries (CIB). Read the full post.
Originally published on May 12, 2020
Expanded Availability of Brand Safety Controls - Content Allow Lists, Publisher Allow Lists and Delivery Reports
Timed with the Community Standard Enforcement Report (version five) on May 12, we announced expanded availability of brand safety controls including content whitelists (renamed content allow lists), publisher whitelists (renamed publisher allow lists) for Audience Network, delivery reports and live stream exclusion at the account level. Read the full post.
Originally published on April 23, 2020
Federal Court officially approved agreement with Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
FTC investigation that began after the events surrounding Cambridge Analytica in 2018 concluded with approval of agreement by the federal court. Read the full post.
Originally published on April 22, 2020
Added Location of High-Reach Facebook Page and Instagram Accounts
We started providing the location of high-reach Facebook Page and Instagram accounts with high US reach that are based outside of the US. Read the full post.
Originally published on April 16, 2020
Fact-Checking Program Reached 60+ Partner Organizations
Since COVID-19 was declared a public emergency, we have put warning labels on over 50 million pieces of content related to COVID with the help of over 60 fact-checking organizations from around the world. Read the full post.
Originally published on April 8, 2020
New Machine Learning Code Completeness Checklist and Reproducibility Challenge
Papers with Code, a free community-driven resource for machine learning (ML), introduced the ML Code Completeness Checklist to enhance reproducibility and provide a much-needed collection of best practices and code repository assessments, allowing users to build upon previously published work. Read the full post.
Originally published on April 2, 2020
March 2020 Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior Takedown Report
Originally published on April 1, 2020
Announced US Census Efforts Drove 11M People to Census Site
Originally published on March 18, 2020
Launched COVID-19 Information Center
Launched a new Coronavirus Information Center on Facebook to help people find accurate information and helpful resources. Read the full post.
Originally published March 12, 2020
Monthly Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior (CIB) Takedown
In March, we removed 49 Facebook accounts, 69 Pages and 85 Instagram accounts for engaging in foreign interference. Read the full post.
Originally published March 2, 2020
Started Publishing Information About All Networks We Take Down
We started publishing information about all networks we take down as part of regular CIB reports so people can see the progress we are making. Read the full post.
Originally published February 16, 2020
Community Standards Enforcement Report Audit Announcement
In February we announced that we’re exploring opening up our content moderation systems for external audit. This separate third-party audit will be completed by a reputable firm and include the incidence of violating content. Read the full post.
Originally published February 16, 2020
Launched Election Operations Center in US for all Primary Elections
We launched an Election Operations Center that brings together subject matter experts to monitor misinformation or abuse related to the election or census. Read the full post.
Originally published January 22, 2020
Marketing Leaders Take Action on Harmful Online Content
The Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) unveiled its strategy to create a more sustainable and responsible digital environment that protects consumers, the media industry and society. Read the full post.
Originally published January 9, 2020
New Transparency Features and Controls for Social and Political Ads
We announced new transparency features and controls including Ad Library search and filtering and control over Custom Audiences from a list for ads about social issues, elections or politics. Read the full post.
Originally published January 6, 2020
Announced Policy to Take Down Misleading Manipulated Media
We strengthened policy around misleading manipulated videos and highlighted standards for removal of content. Read the full post.
2019
Originally published December 20, 2019
Removed Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior From Georgia, Vietnam and the US
Originally published December 19, 2019
Banned Census Interference - Civil Rights Audit Outcome
Originally published December 17, 2019
Helping Fact-Checkers Identify False Claims Faster
Announced a new pilot program that will help third-party fact-checking partners identify false claims faster. Read the full post.
Originally published December 16, 2019
Launched Fact-Checking of Instagram Content
We expanded our fact-checking program globally to allow fact-checking organizations around the world to assess and rate misinformation on our platform. Read the full post.
Originally published December 3, 2019
Expanded Enforcement of a Process to Prevent Discrimination in Ads that Offer Housing, Employment and Credit Opportunities and Launched Housing Ads in the Ad Library
Originally published November 20, 2019
Introduced New Brand Safety Controls for Advertisers
We announced our approach to brand safety and announced strides in our brand safety controls. We shared:
- A one-stop place in Business Manager or Ads Manager to create block lists, get delivery reports, and set an account-level inventory filter, rather than applying it one campaign at a time
- Improved delivery reports
- Dynamic content sets (renamed content allow lists), a content-level white listing tool for advertisers working with Integral Ad Science, OpenSlate, and Zefr
- Testing of publisher allow lists (previously named publisher whitelists) for Audience Network and in-stream ads on Facebook with select advertisers
Originally published November 13, 2019
Fourth Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q2 to Q3 2019
Originally published October 21, 2019
Increased Pages Transparency
We made Pages more transparent by showing the confirmed Page owner and labelled state-controlled media on their Page and in our Ad Library. We also made it easier to understand political ads, including a new US Presidential candidate spend tracker. Read the full post.
Originally published October 21, 2019
Updated Warnings on False Information
We updated warnings on false information, first rolled out in December 2017, to be clearer and more prominent. We launched Facebook Protect to give campaigns, elected officials, their staffs and others increased security protections. Read the full post.
Originally published October 21, 2019
Updated Inauthentic Behavior Policy
We updated our inauthentic behavior policy to clarify how we act against the spectrum of deceptive practices we see on our platform and to further improve our ability to counter new tactics and bad actors.
Read more about How We Respond to Inauthentic Behavior on Our Platforms: Policy Update and Helping to Protect the 2020 US Elections.
Originally published October 21, 2019
Expanded Policy Ban on ‘Useless’ Voting
We expanded our policy to ban ads that suggest voting is useless or meaningless, or advise people not to vote. Read the full post.
Originally published October 21, 2019
Launched Facebook Protect
We launched Facebook Protect to give campaigns, elected officials, their staffs and others increased security protections. Read the full post.
Originally published October 21, 2019
Added U.S. Presidential Ad Spend Tracker to the Ad Library
We added a Presidential ad spend tracker to the Ad Library. Read the full post.
Originally published October 17, 2020
Announced More Than 35,000 People Working on Safety and Security at Facebook
Originally published October 3, 2019
Introduced Instagram Restrict
Restrict is designed to empower people to quietly protect their account while still keeping an eye on a bully. Read the full post.
Originally published September 20, 2019
Began an Ongoing App Developer Investigation
We shared an update on the ongoing App Developer Investigation as part of our response to Cambridge Analytica to better understand patterns of abuse in order to root out bad actors among developers. Read the full post.
Originally published September 17, 2019
Shared an Update on Our Efforts to Combat Hate and Extremism
We shared a series of updates and shifts that improve how we combat terrorists, violent extremist groups and hate organizations on Facebook and Instagram. Read the full post.
Originally published August 28, 2019
Announced a Stricter Political Ad Authorization Process
We announced that organizations running social issue/political ads in the US now have to go through a stricter authorizations process, including providing information such as a Tax ID or FEC Committee ID number. Read the full post
Originally published August 26, 2019
New Process for Housing, Employment and Credit Ads in Ads Manager
We began requiring all advertisers based in the US or trying to reach audiences in the US to use our new process to buy housing, employment and credit opportunity ads. Read the full post.
Originally published August 20, 2019
Introduced Off Facebook Activity
We introduced Off-Facebook Activity, which lets people see a summary of the apps and websites that send Facebook information about their activity, and clear this information from their account if they want to, rolling out globally through 2020. Read the full post.
Originally published August 1, 2019
Open-Sourced Technology to Help Industry More Easily Identify Abusive Content
We open-sourced two technologies on GitHub to help our industry partners, smaller developers and non-profits more easily identify abusive content and digital fingerprints in nearly identical photos and videos. Read the full post.
Originally published July 24, 2019
FTC Agreement and Rigorous New Privacy Standards
We shared information about the settlement with the Federal Trade Commission and provided a comprehensive new framework for protecting people’s privacy. Read the full post.
Originally published July 2, 2019
Addressed Sensational Health Claims in News Feed Ranking
We began reducing the distribution of posts in News Feed that: contain exaggerated or sensational health claims and attempt to sell products or services based on health-related claims. Read the full post.
Originally published June 30, 2019
Published Second Update on Civil Rights Audit
Originally published June 25, 2019
Expanded Ads Authorization Process To More Advertisers Globally
Originally published June 18, 2019
Facebook Joined GARM
17 of the world’s leading advertisers, including Facebook, announced the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, an unprecedented, global collaboration with agencies, media companies and platforms, and industry associations to rapidly improve digital safety. Read the full post.
Originally published June 14, 2019
Improved Public Comment Ranking in News Feed
We explained how we’re working to improve comment ranking on public posts and how Pages and people can control their own comment ranking settings. Read the full post.
Originally published May 23, 2019
Third Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q4 2018 to Q1 2019
We added data on how much content was appealed and restored, as well as data on regulated goods. Read the full post.
Originally published April 10, 2019
Introduced Brand Safety Inventory Filter
We transitioned from category exclusion blocking controls to a new inventory filter that provided advertisers simplified controls over where their ads appear. Read the full post.
Originally published April 10, 2019
Recapped Our Work to Reduce the Distribution of Problematic Content in News Feed
We reduced the distribution of problematic content in News Feed by responding to peoples’ feedback, incentivizing publishers to invest in high-quality content, and fostering a safe community. Read the full post.
Originally published March 28, 2019
Ad Library and Ads/Pages Transparency
We rolled out an improved Ad Library that brings together all ads on the platform. We also included a “Page Transparency” section within every Page. Read the full post.
Originally published March 27, 2019
Banned Praise, Support and Representation of White Nationalism and White Separatism content on Facebook and Instagram
Originally published March 19, 2019
Protections Against Discrimination in Housing, Employment and Credit Advertising
We announced changes in how we manage housing, employment and credit opportunity ads on our platform. These changes were the result of the historic settlement agreements with leading civil rights organizations and ongoing input from civil rights experts. Read the full post.
Originally published March 7, 2019
Began Combatting Vaccine Misinformation
Originally published February 7, 2019
Announced We Will Not Allow Graphic Images of Self-Harm on Instagram
Following a comprehensive review with global experts and academics on youth, mental health and suicide prevention, we announced we will not allow any graphic images of self-harm, such as cutting, on Instagram. We also focused on getting more resources to people posting and searching for self-harm related content and directing them to organizations that can help. Read the full post.
Originally published January 28, 2019
Released the Draft Charter for Oversight Board
Nick Clegg, Facebook’s VP of Global Affairs and Communications, shared a draft charter giving more detail about the potential make-up of an independent oversight board for how content should be governed and enforced on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published January 28, 2019
Expanded Fact-Checking Program to Review Photos, Videos and Article Links (Europe and Asia)
We set up two new regional operations centers, focused on election integrity, in our Dublin and Singapore offices to further strengthen our coordination and response time between staff in Menlo Park and in-country.
We also continued to expand our third-party fact-checking program, which now covers content in 16 languages and also reviews photos, videos and article links. Read the full post.
Originally published January 27, 2019
Launched Privacy and Data Use Business Hub
We launched a new Privacy and Data Use Business Hub, which centralizes resources that businesses can use to understand how they can protect people’s information when using Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published January 23, 2019
Made Pages More Transparent and Accountable
We shared new steps we took to make Pages more transparent including updating our recidivism policy and showing a tab to admins when we remove content that violates our Community Standards. Read the full post.
2018
Originally published December 18, 2018
Laura Murphy Shared the First Update on our Civil Rights Audit
In response to the audit, we updated our policy to expressly ban misrepresentations about how to vote. Other misinformation related to voting, including false claims of polling place closures, long lines and wait times, is proactively sent to third-party fact-checkers for review. Read the full post.
Originally published November 19, 2018
Reduced Inauthentic Activity on Instagram
We began removing inauthentic likes, follows and comments from accounts that use third-party apps to boost their popularity. Read the full post.
Originally published November 15, 2018
Second Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q2 to Q3 2018
The second report showed our enforcement efforts on our policies against the original six areas (graphic violence, adult nudity and sexual activity, terrorist propaganda, hate speech, spam and fake accounts) from April 2018 to September 2018, as well as two new categories of data — Bullying and Harassment, and Child Nudity and Sexual Exploitation of Children. Read the full post.
Originally published November 8, 2018
Shared New Tactics We’re Using to Combat Terrorism
We included Q1, Q2, Q3 2018 enforcement data on terrorism, and talked about some of the new tactics we’re using to combat terrorism. Read the full post.
Originally published October 25, 2018
Launched Candidate Info - Hear From Your Candidate Directly
Originally published October 23, 2018
Rolled Out Ad Library Report
We rolled out the Ad Library report to make it easier to see who is running social issues/political ads on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published October 18, 2018
Elections Operations Center Opens
We opened our first physical Elections Operations Center for monitoring ahead of key elections. Read the full post.
Originally published October 15, 2018
Expanded Voter Suppression Policy and New Ways to Report Potential Suppression
We expanded voter suppression policies and announced new ways for users to report potential voter suppression. Read the full post.
Originally published October 9, 2018
New Anti-Bullying Tools on Instagram
We introduced a bullying comment filter to proactively detect and hide bullying comments from Feed, Explore and Profile, and on Live Videos. Read the full post.
Originally published October 2, 2018
New Anti-Bullying Tools on Facebook and Better Protection for Public Figures
We gave people more control over how people interact with their posts. We introduced a way for people to hide or delete multiple comments at once from the options menu of their post, and expanded our policies to guard against the harassment of young public figures on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published September 20, 2018
Published Demos Research on Youth Engagement Through Social Media
We commissioned independent think tank Demos to provide a detailed look at how social media shapes young people’s experiences online and their lives in the real world. Read the full post.
Originally published September 13, 2018
Expanded Fact-Checking to Photos and Videos
Originally published September 10, 2018
Shared Brand Safety Updates To Give New Visibility Into Ad Placements through Publisher Lists and Delivery Reports
We announced additional brand safety features that gave new visibility into ad placements through publisher lists and delivery reports on Facebook In-stream, Instant Articles and Audience Network. Read the full post.
Originally published August 28, 2018
New Tools to Keep Instagram Safe
We announced a new feature to help people evaluate the authenticity of accounts with large followings on Instagram. “About this Account” shows the date the account joined Instagram, the country where the account is located, accounts with shared followers, any username changes in the last year and any ads the account is currently running.
We also launched a global verification form within the Instagram app for notable public figures. To be verified with the blue badge, an account must comply with Instagram’s Terms of Service and Community Guidelines.
Originally published August 2, 2018
Launched Digital Literacy Library
We launched the Digital Literacy Library — a resource for educators looking to address digital literacy and help these young people build the skills they need to safely enjoy digital technology. Read the full post.
Originally published June 21, 2018
Increasing Our Efforts to Fight False News
We shared new updates in the fight against false news, including expanding our fact-checking program to new countries, expanding our test to fact-check photos and videos, increasing the impact of fact-checking by using new techniques, including identifying duplicates and using Claim Review, taking action against new kinds of repeat offenders, and improving measurement and transparency by partnering with academics. Read the full post.
Originally published June 28, 2018
Transparency in Ads Across Facebook
We allowed people to see the ads a Page is running across Facebook, Instagram and Messenger even if those ads aren’t shown to them. Read the full post.
Originally published May 2018
Accepted the Call to Undertake a Civil Rights Audit in the US
Originally published May 23, 2018
Launched New Tools to Support Group Admins and Keep Communities Safe
Originally published May 22, 2018
Launched the Ad Library
We launched the Ad Library (with social issue/political ads archived for seven years) and began requiring that advertisers running social issue/political ads confirm their location in the US and place “Paid for by” disclaimers on these ads. Read the full post.
Originally published May 15, 2018
First Edition of the Community Standards Enforcement Report - Q4 2017 to Q1 2018
This report covers our enforcement efforts between October 2017 to March 2018, and it covers six areas: graphic violence, adult nudity and sexual activity, terrorist propaganda, hate speech, spam, and fake accounts. Read the full post.
Originally published May 17, 2018
Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab Partnership
We began partnership with the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab to study and investigate disinformation campaigns around the world, and continued to expand these external partnerships throughout 2018 and beyond. Read the full post.
Originally published April 24, 2018
Expanded Appeals Process for Content Decisions
We introduced appeals for some content that we may have mistakenly removed. Read the full post
Originally published April 24, 2018
Updated Community Standards to Include Internal Guidelines for Content Decisions
We updated our Community Standards to include internal guidelines used for decisions about content. Read the full post.
Originally published April 23, 2018
Update on Technology to Detect Terrorist Content
We took action on 1.9 million pieces of ISIS and Al Qaeda content. We found the vast majority of this content ourselves, with 99% removed before a user reported it. We also shared our definition of terrorist organizations for the first time. Read the full post.
Originally published April 9, 2018
Announced Election Research Commission
We announced the Election Research Commission to study social media’s role in elections. Read the full post.
Originally published April 6, 2018
Making the Ads and Pages More Transparent
We extended requirements that only authorized advertised can show “issue ads” like political topics that are being debated across the country, extending that requirement to anyone that wants to show “issue ads.”Read the full post.
Originally published April 3, 2018
Authenticity Matters: The IRA Has No Place On Facebook
We removed 70 Facebook and 65 Instagram accounts — as well as 138 Facebook Pages — that were controlled by the Russia-based Internet Research Agency (IRA). Read the full post.
Originally published March 28, 2018
Removed Partner Categories
We removed Partner Categories, which enabled third-party data providers to offer their targeting directly on Facebook, as part of our data protection efforts. Read the full post.
Originally published March 28, 2018
Made Our Privacy Tools Easier to Find
We redesigned our entire settings menu on mobile devices, launched a new Privacy Shortcuts menu and introduced Access Your Information – a secure way for people to access and manage their information. Read the full post.
Originally published March 21, 2018
Cracking Down on Platform Abuse
Mark Zuckerberg announced important steps to crack down on platform abuse, strengthening our policies, and making it easier for people to revoke apps’ ability to use user data. Read the full post.
Originally published March 16, 2018
Cambridge Analytica Suspension and Investigation
We suspended Strategic Communication Laboratories (SCL), including their political data analytics firm, Cambridge Analytica, from Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published March 16, 2018
Preparation for General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
We launched a new GDPR site to share updates on our own preparation efforts, and provide information on your data protection responsibilities as an advertiser on Facebook. View the site here.
Originally published January 28, 2018
Giving People More Privacy Control on Facebook
We introduced a new education campaign to help people understand how data is used on Facebook and shared our privacy principles for the first time. Read the full post.
Originally published January 19, 2018
News Feed Ranking: Helping Ensure News on Facebook is From Trusted Sources
We surveyed a diverse and representative sample of people using Facebook across the US to gauge their familiarity with, and trust in, various different sources of news. This data will help to inform ranking in News Feed. Read the full post.
2017
Originally published December 20, 2017
‘Related Articles’ Launch
We launched ‘Related Articles’ to give people more information on content rated false by third-party fact-checkers. Read the full post.
Originally published December 18, 2017
News Feed Ranking: Fighting Engagement Bait on Facebook
We reduced the distribution of spammy posts that got people into interacting with likes, shares, comments and other actions. Read the full post.
Originally published November 28, 2017
Are We Winning the War on Terrorism?
This is an update on our efforts against terrorism, sharing that 99% of the ISIS and Al Qaeda-related terror content we remove from Facebook is content we detect before anyone in our community has flagged it to us. Read the full post.
Originally published November 27, 2017
Published Our Advertising Principles
We outlined the principles that guide our decision making when it comes to advertising across Facebook, Messenger and Instagram. Read the full post.
Originally published October 27, 2017
New Political Ad Authorization Requirements
We announced new authorization requirements before advertisers can run ads about elections or politics on Facebook or Instagram. Read the full post.
Originally published October 5, 2017
Launched “About This Article”
We launched a new feature designed to provide people with some of the tools they need to make an informed decision about which stories to read, share and trust. Read the full post.
Originally published October 2, 2017
Improved Enforcement and Transparency of Ads on Facebook
WWe shared details about the updates we are putting in place and new steps to improve review and enforcement of ads and ad accounts. Read the full post.
Originally published September 21, 2017
Protecting Election Integrity
We shared the steps we're taking to protect election integrity and make sure that Facebook is a force for good in democracy. Read the full post.
Originally published September 21, 2017
Removed Accounts for Violating Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior Policy
We provided additional information on Russian ads. Read the full post.
Originally published September 14, 2017
Updated Ad Targeting to Prevent Potential Discrimination
Offensive education or employer fields manually entered were being shown as a targetable demographic. Self-reported targeting areas were removed. Read the full post
Originally published September 13, 2017
Introduced New Monetization Eligibility Standards
We introduced new monetization eligibility standards that provide guidance around the types of publishers and creators eligible to earn money on Facebook, and the kind of content that can be monetized. We launched pre-campaign reporting (later renamed publisher lists), and announced post-campaign reporting that identifies the publishers that ads ran on was coming in 2018.
We also shared an update on our work to achieve MRC accreditation. Read the full post.
Originally published September 6, 2017
Removed 470 Accounts in Russia for Violating Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior Policy
We identified ad buys originating from inauthentic accounts in Russia. We found approximately $100,000 in ad spending from June 2015 to May 2017 — associated with roughly 3,000 ads — that was connected to about 470 inauthentic accounts and Pages in violation of our policies. Read the full post.
Originally published August 28, 2017
Began Blocking Ads from Pages that Repeatedly Share False News
We announced that Pages that repeatedly share stories marked as false would no longer be allowed to advertise on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published August 22, 2017
Refined Our Hate Speech Policy
We refined our hate speech policy by introducing three different tiers/types of attacks, from most severe to least, with the goal of enabling more nuanced enforcement.
Originally published August 17, 2017
News Feed Ranking: Taking Action Against Video Clickbait
We made updates to our existing clickbait enforcements that would limit the spread of stories in News Feed that feature either fake video play buttons or videos only of a static image. Read the full post.
Originally published August 9, 2017
Addressing Cloaking
We shared that we use AI and human review to identify, capture and verify ads, posts and Pages that contain cloaking practices. We announced that we would ban advertisers or Pages found to be cloaking, so that what people see after clicking an ad or post matches their expectations. Read the full post.
Originally published June 30, 2017
News Feed Ranking: Showing More Informative Links in News Feed
We deprioritized links that are shared more frequently by spammers, to surface more stories that people find informative and reduce the spread of problematic links such as clickbait, sensationalism and misinformation. Read the full post.
Originally published June 29, 2017
Launched Instagram Offensive Comments Filter
We announced two new tools to help keep Instagram a safe place for self-expression – a filter to block certain offensive comments and a spam filter in nine languages. Read the full post.
Originally published June 27, 2017
Outlined Considerations in Defining Hate Speech and Added 3,000 Content Reviewers
We outlined the considerations in defining hate speech, including the need to consider the context and intent behind language. Read the full post.
Originally published June 26, 2017
Announced the Formation of the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism with Microsoft, Twitter and YouTube
We announced the formation of the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism in conjunction with Microsoft, Twitter and YouTube. Read the full post.
Originally published June 14, 2017
Announced New Features and Controls to Improve Brand Safety
We announced additional brand safety controls and made existing ones easier to use, including:
- Pre-campaign transparency: a complete list of publishers and places where ads could run in Audience Network, Instant Articles and in-stream video on Facebook.
- Domain and app blocking at the Business Manager account level.
- Audience Network video placement opt-out controls.
Originally published June 15, 2017
How We Counter Terrorism
We shared how we began to use technology to combat terrorism, in addition to building a team of counterterrorism specialists. Read the full post.
Originally published May 17, 2017
News Feed Ranking: Reducing Links to Low-Quality Web Page Experiences (Ad Farms)
Following 2016’s updates, we made further updates to News Feed so that people would see even fewer clickbait stories in their feeds, and more of the stories they find authentic. Read the full post.
Originally published April 27, 2017
Information Operations Whitepaper
We published a whitepaper about attempts by organized groups and individuals to promote misinformation, spread false news and obtain information about other people. Read the full post.
Originally published April 25, 2017
Related Articles Test
We began testing “Related Articles” that appear before reading an article shared in News Feed, providing people easier access to additional perspectives and information, including articles by third-party fact checkers. Read the full post.
Originally published April 6, 2017
Launched Fake News Tool
We announced a new tool to help people spot false news on Facebook. Read the full post.
Originally published February 8, 2017
Updated Our Anti-Discrimination Ads Policies
We introduced new steps to ensure there is no discriminatory advertising on Facebook by updating advertising policies, new advertiser education and stronger enforcement tools. Read the full post.
Originally published January 31, 2017
News Feed ranking: New Signals to Show More Authentic and Timely Stories
We announced new signals to identify authentic content and updates to real-time signals. Read the full post.
Originally published January 11, 2017
Announced The Facebook Journalism Project
We announced an effort to support quality journalism, improve news literacy and provide reporters and editors with tools and training to help them better tell their stories. Read the full post.
2016
Originally published December 15, 2016
Disrupted Financial Incentives for Spammers, Made it Easier to Report Hoaxes and Began Flagging Disputed Stories as False
We focused our efforts on the clear hoaxes spread by spammers for their own gain, and on engaging both our community and third party organizations. The work fell into the following areas:
- Made it easier to report a hoax
- Flagged stories as disputed if fact-checking organizations identified a story as fake and added a link to the corresponding article explaining why
- Disrupted financial incentives for spammers
Originally published December 15, 2016
Launched Third-Party Fact-Checking Program
We announced the third-party fact-checking program as well as easier reporting flows for hoaxes and additional steps to disrupt financial incentives for spammers. Read the full Newsroom post and Mark Zuckerberg’s update about misinformation.
Originally published December 5, 2016
Joined Cross-Industry Partnership to Fight Terrorist Content
We committed to the creation of a shared industry database of “hashes” — unique digital “fingerprints” — for violent terrorist imagery and videos that we removed from our services. By sharing this information with each other, we use the shared hashes to help identify potential terrorist content on our respective hosted consumer platforms to lead to greater efficiency. Read the full post.
Originally published November 11, 2016
Disabled Multicultural Affinity Marketing for Ads that Offer Housing, Employment, and Credit Opportunities, and Banned Discriminatory ‘Ethnic Marketing’ — Outcomes of Civil Rights Feedback
Originally published October 21, 2016
Began Allowing More Newsworthy Updates - Even if They Might Otherwise Violate Our Community Standards
We began allowing more items that people find newsworthy, significant or important to the public interest — even if they might otherwise violate our standards. Read the full post.
Originally published August 4, 2016
Further Reduced Clickbait in Feed
We announced efforts to identify and reduce clickbait headlines in feed. Read the full post.
Originally published June 29, 2016
News Feed Ranking Update
We announced an update to News Feed that helped people see more posts from friends and family. Read the full post.
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Our Commitment to Safety
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