Wat-Not Staff
Meta, Snap, and TikTok have joined forces to launch a new program called ‘Thrive’ aimed at curbing the spread of graphic content related to suicide and self-harm across their platforms. The initiative, developed in partnership with the Mental Health Coalition, allows these social media giants to share “signals” about violating content, enabling them to quickly identify and remove similar posts.
The initiative aims for secure sharing
Through Thrive, when content depicting or encouraging self-harm is detected on one platform, it is assigned a unique identifier called a “hash”. This hash can then be shared securely with the other participating companies, who can use it to search for and remove the same content from their own platforms. The technology is similar to that used in the Lantern program, which combats online child abuse.
Meta, which provides the technical infrastructure for Thrive, emphasizes that the focus is on the content itself rather than targeting individual users. The shared signals will not include any personally identifiable information about accounts or individuals.
While Meta has already made efforts to limit the visibility of self-harm and suicide-related content, the company still aims to provide a space for people to discuss mental health issues openly, as long as posts do not cross the line into promotion or graphic details. The Thrive initiative strengthens these efforts by enabling a collaborative approach to quickly address dangerous content.
Functioning of Thrive
Social media networks will be able to gather and exchange data about self-harm content among themselves with the help of Thrive. For example, when someone flags a piece of content as inciting self-harm, Snapchat will be notified. The business will be able to evaluate and respond to the flagged content in light of this notice.
In a similar vein, every business involved in the Thrive initiative will have the capacity to submit, examine, and respond to content pertaining to suicide or self-harm. A yearly report detailing the effectiveness of the platform devoted to suicide prevention will also be released, with contributions from participating companies.
“Thrive is a unique collaboration of the most powerful social media platforms that has joined together to address suicide and self-harm content. We at the MHC are pleased to engage with Thrive. Kenneth Cole, the MHC’s founder, said in a statement that Meta, Snap, and TikTok are among the first partners to join “the exchange,” promising to have an even bigger impact and contribute to lifesaving.
The scopes and challenges
Meta’s data shows that the company deals with millions of pieces of content related to self-harm and suicide each quarter. In the most recent period, approximately 25,000 posts were restored after being appealed by users, reflecting the complexity of managing this type of content.
As social media continues to play a significant role in people’s lives, particularly among younger users, the Thrive initiative represents a crucial step towards ensuring safer online spaces. By sharing alerts and acting collaboratively, these platforms aim to limit the reach of harmful content and better protect their users.
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