bullying
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Snap bans anonymous messaging from third-party apps
Meetup and friend-finding apps will be restricted to adults.
YouTube will hide dislike counts for all videos
YouTube is now hiding dislike counts on videos, possibly reducing harassment against some creators.
TikTok gives livestreamers more ways to mute annoying people
As promised in July, TikTok is rolling out more ways for livestreams to wrangle their unruly audiences.
Facebook introduces new policies to protect public figures from targeted harassment
Facebook is introducing new policies to safeguard users from online bullying and harassment.
Twitter web test lets you remove followers without blocking them
Twitter is testing a feature on the web that lets you remove followers without blocking them, saving you from potential harassment.
Twitter expands its anti-bullying prompts to all users
A year after it began testing prompts that asked users to “rethink” mean replies, Twitter is expanding the feature to all its iOS and Android users.
Instagram adds new anti-harassment tools to block abusive DMs
Instagram is adding new features to prevent harassment in direct messages.
TikTok adds new comment controls to discourage bullying
TikTok is introducing new features meant to reduce bullying and harassment on its platform: new comment controls and in-app prompts to discourage nasty comments.
Facebook is getting better at taking down bullies
Facebook says it’s getting better at detecting bullying and harassment on its platforms.
Instagram marks its 10th anniversary with new anti-bullying features
Instagram is celebrating its tenth anniversary with new anti-bullying features and the return of tis photo map.
Facebook removes massive QAnon group over hate and harassment claims
Facebook has removed a QAnon group with almost 200,000 members over repeated claims of hate and harassment.
Instagram adds new comment filtering tools to combat bullying
Instagram introduced a new set of anti-bullying tools as Facebook details its work to fight harassment.
Twitter test asks you to ‘rethink’ sending mean replies
No, it's not an edit button.
Instagram is using AI to alert bullies to offensive captions
Instagram's anti-bullying efforts now extend to discouraging abusive behavior in posts, not just comments. It's introducing a feature that warns people when their post captions might be offensive, using AI to detect language similar to posts that have previously been reported. In theory, this makes bullies second-guess their vitriol, stick to kinder language and learn about the social network's rules. You can ignore the warning if Instagram made a mistake.
Microsoft tests content filters for Xbox messages
The gaming community can be ruthless and often outright abusive. In an attempt to make Xbox more welcoming and inclusive, Microsoft is introducing new content filters. Beginning today, Xbox Insiders can select one of four filters that will automatically block abusive and offensive messages.
Instagram makes its 'Restrict' anti-bullying tool available to everyone
Instagram is continuing to expand its anti-bullying efforts. A few months after it started testing its "Restrict" tool with a small group of users, the company is now rolling it out to everyone. The feature, which is designed to protect your account from unwanted interactions, makes it easy for you to quietly filter out people who may be harassing you in the app. Instagram says its latest anti-bullying tool can be useful for those who are reluctant to report or block bullies, particularly young people, as Restrict gives them a subtle way to hinder any problematic followers. This means that comments from accounts you restrict won't show up publicly on your posts (unless you approve them), and they won't be able to see when you're active or have read their direct messages.
Reddit widens its anti-harassment policies to enable swifter crackdowns
Reddit is toughening its anti-harassment policies, and that's having consequences for parts of its community. The social site's new approach no longer limits harassment to those instances of "continued" or "systematic" activity, and includes any instance where a perpetrator tries to "shut someone out of the conversation," not just threats to real-world safety. That can include direct threats against people or whole groups, rallying others for harassment campaigns, following someone around or otherwise taking measures that would "discourage a reasonable person" from using Reddit.
Jonah Hill tackles bullying in new Instagram TV series
IGTV may not be capturing hearts and minds but at least Instagram is leveraging the platform to talk about important issues. Starting today, Instagram users can watch a new four-part series from the Facebook-owned company and 22 Jump Street actor Jonah Hill, reports Variety. The series, titled Un-filtered, features Hill interviewing 13 to 25-year-olds about their experiences with bullying. In some instances, Hill also interviews people who were bullies. The series also touches on both cyber and offline bullying.
BBC's smart keyboard helps kids live healthy digital lives
The BBC wants to help kids have healthy and positive interactions online, and it's hoping its new Own It app will do just that. The app is centered around a keyboard that pops up whenever a user begins to type. If the message is negative, the app can offer support, give advice and recommend talking to a trusted adult.
Instagram’s anti-bullying tool lets you ‘restrict’ problematic followers
Today, Instagram announced two new tools meant to combat bullying. The first will use AI to warn users if a comment they're about to post may be considered offensive. In theory, it will give users a chance to rethink their comments. The second will allow users to "restrict" problematic followers. Comments by restricted followers won't appear publicly (unless you approve them), and users on your restricted list won't be able to see when you're active or when you've read their direct messages.
