Daily Safeguarding Update

Facebook’s response to child abuse ‘inadequate’

A former Facebook employee has told US authorities that the company’s efforts to remove child abuse material from the platform were “inadequate” and “under-resourced”.
These allegations were submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) two weeks ago.
The anonymous whistle-blower says moderators are “not sufficiently trained and are ill-prepared”.
Facebook claims that they use technology known as PhotoDNA and VideoDNA, which automatically scans for known child abuse images.
Each image recovered by law enforcement and referred to the American National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) is given a unique identifying code.
The whistle-blower alleges that there was no solution for illegal material at Facebook because there had not been “adequate assets devoted to the problem”.
Full story, here.

TikTok is experimenting with a new tool that allows users to tip some creators directly on their profiles.
Any money tipped to creators will go directly to that individual (meaning TikTok won’t take a cut).
To qualify, accounts must be in good standing on the platform, have at least 100,000 followers, meet an age requirement, and agree to TikTok’s tips terms.
Users must be 18 years or older to send tips to creators, but it doesn’t appear that users must be following the account they’re tipping to use the feature.
The ‘tips’ button leads users to a page where they can submit their tip, and this can be done anonymously.
The feature is being tested on a limited basis, and no specific roll-out date has been announced.
Full story, here.

The government has launched a 6-week consultation period exploring how to effectively ban coercive conversion therapies.
Growing evidence suggests that there is a strong link between conversion therapy and serious psychological harm.
Once the consultation period ends, responses will inform further refinements and the government will prepare to introduce legislation in 2022.
This follows proposals for plans to crack down on “coercive and abhorrent” practices that seek to change sexual orientation or gender identity.
The government’s proposals emphasise the safeguarding of under 18s, who are often targeted by providers at a young age due to their vulnerability.
The Government Equalities Office states that they don’t intend to ban adults from seeking counselling freely.
Under the proposals, conversion therapy of all kinds will be banned in England and Wales for those under 18 and adults who are vulnerable and not able to consent properly.
Full story, here.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has announced that the social media giant will change its company name to ‘Meta’.
The new holding company Meta will encompass Facebook, its largest subsidiary, and apps such as Instagram, WhatsApp, and the virtual reality (VR) brand Oculus.
In recent earning reports, the company announced its VR segment has grown substantially.
Zuckerberg detailed plans for building the ‘metaverse’ – a digital world comprising virtual reality headsets and augmented reality.
This rebrand comes as the company faces a series of public relations crises including whistle-blower accounts detailing Facebook’s profit over safety mindset.
Critics have warned that the metaverse project is a distraction from the company’s PR crisis.
Full story, here.