The boss of Instagram has been asked to meet the health secretary this week over the platform’s handling of content promoting self- harm and suicide. This comes after the suicide of teenager Molly Russell and her exposure to harmful material.
Instagram’s boss, Adam Mosseri, said it would begin adding “sensitivity screens” which hide images until users actively choose to look at them.
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In 2017, Molly took her own life. When her family looked at her instagram account they found distressing images about depression and suicide. Her father believes Instagram had “helped kill” his daughter.
Mr Mosseri will meet Matt Hancock on Thursday. The health secretary said that social media firms could be banned if they fail to remove harmful content. Mr Mosseri said Molly’s case had left him “deeply moved” and now accepted Instagram had work to do.
Mr Mosseri said: “We rely heavily on our community to report this content, and remove it as soon as it’s found,” he wrote.
“The bottom line is we do not yet find enough of these images before they’re seen by other people.”
Instagram has begun a comprehensive review and is investigating in technology “to better identify sensitive images” as part of wider plans to make posts on teh subject harder to find.
Mr Mosseri said: “Starting this week we will be applying sensitivity screens to all content we review that contains cutting, as we still allow people to share that they are struggling even if that content no longer shows up in search, hashtags or account recommendations.
“These images will not be immediately visible, which will make it more difficult for people to see them.”
Instagram does not automatically remove distressing content because it has been advised by experts that allowing users to share their stories and connect with others going through similar situations could be helpful for their recovery.
A statement from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport said: “We have heard calls for an internet regulator and to place a statutory ‘duty of care’ on platforms, and are seriously considering all options.”
