Meta’s latest update for Threads will address a long-running feature request for the company’s Twitter competitor: topic tags. The company is adding searchable tags to make it easier for people to find conversations that interest them.

Mark Zuckeberg previewed the change last month, but the feature is now available to all Threads users, according to the company. With the update, Threads users can append one tag to each post, and the app will surface tag suggestions and stats about how many other users have used the topic in the past.

Notably, though the feature can be found under the familiar # symbol, Threads’ tags are a bit different than hashtags. As Instagram head Adam Mosseri noted in a post, Threads tags can contain spaces and special characters. Threads posts are also limited to a single tag per post, so users may want to think carefully about which tag they select.

Hashtags have been a long-requested feature for Meta’s Twitter competitor, and many users have questioned why the company didn’t carry over the feature, which is also widely used on Instagram. It seems Meta has been slow to adopt the feature, however, because of fears of how it could be misused on the rapidly growing platform.

Hashtags, while long popular on Instagram and X, have also been misused. On Instagram, hashtags have been used to spread misinformation and other incredibly problematic content. And while Meta has already imposed search limitations on “potentially sensitive” content on Threads, the added restrictions on tags might discourage other kinds of abuse. “The hope is this design focuses tags more on communities and less on engagement hacking,” Mosseri explained.

But even with the limitations, the addition of tags could help make Threads more useful for tracking real-time conversations. And the fact that tags include stats about how much they’re being used suggests it could also be a precursor to some kind of trending topics feature, which has been the source of much speculation.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/metas-threads-is-getting-searchable-topics-just-dont-call-them-hashtags-191915209.html?src=rss

Meta is failing to stop vast networks of people using its platform to promote child abuse content, a new report in The Wall Street Journal says, citing numerous disturbing examples of child exploitation it uncovered on Facebook and Instagram. The report, which comes as Meta faces renewed pressure over its handling of children’s safety, has prompted fresh scrutiny from European Union regulators.

In the report, The Wall Street Journal detailed tests it conducted with the Canadian Centre for Child Protection showing how Meta’s recommendations can suggest Facebook Groups, Instagram hashtags and other accounts that are used to promote and share child exploitation material. According to their tests, Meta was slow to respond to reports about such content, and its own algorithms often made it easier for people to connect with abuse content and others interested in it.

For example, the Canadian Centre for Child Protection told the paper a “network of Instagram accounts with as many as 10 million followers each has continued to livestream videos of child sex abuse months after it was reported to the company." In another disturbing example, Meta initially declined to take action on a user report about a public-facing Facebook Group called “Incest.” The group was eventually taken down, along with other similar communities.

In a lengthy update on its website, Meta said that “predators are determined criminals who test app, website and platform defenses,” and that it had improved many of its internal systems to restrict “potentially suspicious adults.” The company said it had “expanded the existing list of child safety related terms, phrases and emojis for our systems to find” and had employed machine learning to uncover new search terms that could be potentially exploited by child predators.

The company said it’s using technology to identify “potentially suspicious adults” in order to prevent them from connecting with each other, including in Facebook Groups, and from seeing each other’s content in recommendations. Meta also told The Wall Street Journal it “has begun disabling individual accounts that score above a certain threshold of suspicious behavior.”

The social network is facing a growing backlash over its handling of child safety. The Wall Street Journal also recently reported that Instagram Reels recommendations are serving content aimed at people who “might have a prurient interest in children.” Dozens of states recently sued Meta for allegedly harming the mental health of its youngest users, and failing to keep children younger than 13 off its apps. Mark Zuckerberg will no doubt face intense questions about these allegations next month when he appears at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing focused on child safety online. His counterparts from TikTok, Snap, X and Discord are also slated to testify.

Meanwhile, Meta is also facing new pressure from regulators abroad. European Union officials are using a new law to probe the company’s handling of child abuse material, following The Journal’s report. The company has been given a December 22 deadline to turn over data to the bloc.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/metas-apps-are-still-promoting-child-predation-content-report-finds-195357362.html?src=rss

More major advertisers are pulling their ads from X amid a growing backlash to antisemitic content on the platform. Apple, Disney and Lionsgate are all reportedly suspending ads from the platform days after X owner Elon Musk appeared to publicly endorse an antisemitic conspiracy theory, according to Axios and The New York Times. Warner Brothers Discovery also paused its ads, according to Deadline, as did Paramount Global per CNBC.

The companies join IBM, which confirmed Thursday it was suspending its ads while it investigated a report that found ads for its Watson division appearing next to pro-Nazi content. The report, published by watchdog group Media Matters, also found ads for Apple, Oracle and other tech companies alongside similar content.

An executive at X previously told Engadget that the posts identified by Media Matters were no longer monetizable and that “the X system is not intentionally placing a brand actively next to this type of content, nor is a brand actively trying to support this content with placement.” X CEO Linda Yaccarino also said that “X has also been extremely clear about our efforts to combat antisemitism and discrimination.”

Many of X’s advertisers have long been concerned about the state of hate speech on the platform, but the departures of Apple, Disney, Lionsgate and IBM are a new blow to the company’s already struggling ad business. And it appears that a recent tweet from Musk, in which voiced agreement with an account promoting an antisemitic conspiracy theory, has prompted more advertisers pull back from the platform, at least temporarily.

Axios reported that Apple opted to “pause” all advertising on the platform, though it’s not clear whether the decision was driven by Musk’s tweet, Media Matters’ report or both. The company didn't immediately respond to a request for comment, but this wouldn’t be the first time the company has raised concerns about the direction of the platform under Musk’s leadership, and its role as a major advertiser. Apple CEO Tim Cook said in September the company was “constantly” questioning whether it should continue advertising on X. Apple also briefly paused ads on X (then Twitter) last year, amid a "misunderstanding" between the two CEOs.

The latest advertiser exodus comes one year after civil rights groups called for an advertiser boycott following Musk’s takeover of Twitter amid concerns about rising hate speech and relaxed content moderation policies under Musk. Though some major Twitter advertisers returned to the platform, the company’s ad business never rebounded. Musk said over the summer that the company’s ad revenue was down more than 50 percent.

Update, November 17 2023, 6:55PM ET: This story has been updated to note that Disney and Lionsgate have joined Apple in pausing advertising on X.

Update, November 17 2023, 7:15PM ET: This story has been updated to reflect reports that Warner Brothers Discovery has also pulled its ads. 

Update, November 17 2023, 7:45PM ET: This story has been updated with CNBC's report that Paramount Global has also pulled ads from X. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-reportedly-pulls-ads-from-x-amid-a-growing-backlash-to-antisemitic-content-on-the-platform-205849759.html?src=rss

IBM is pulling back from X after its ads were placed alongside pro-Nazi content on the platform. The company says it has suspended all ads from the network after nonprofit watchdog group Media Matters reported that it found ads for IBM and several other tech giants next to pro-Nazi memes and other posts promoting Hitler.

“IBM has zero tolerance for hate speech and discrimination and we have immediately suspended all advertising on X while we investigate this entirely unacceptable situation,” the company said in a statement. Comcast, whose ads were also highlighted by Media Matters, told the Financial Times it was looking into the situation.

An executive at X told Engadget that the posts identified by Media Matters will “no longer be monetizable” and will appear with “sensitive media” labels that require users to click through a warning in order to view the content. They added that “while we understand it's not an ideal placement for any ad,” the post had only racked up “about 8,000 impressions.”

It’s not clear how many campaigns are affected by IBM’s decision to suspend ads. But another high profile company pulling back from the platform, even temporarily, is another blow to the company’s already battered advertising business.

In a post on X, CEO Linda Yaccarino said that “discrimination by everyone should STOP across the board,” though she didn’t reference IBM or Media Matters’ report directly. “X has also been extremely clear about our efforts to combat antisemitism and discrimination,” she wrote. “There's no place for it anywhere in the world — it's ugly and wrong.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ibm-suspends-advertising-on-x-after-its-ads-were-placed-next-to-pro-nazi-content-234332820.html?src=rss