Some of you may have faced bullying at school. With the advent of the Internet, this problem has risen to a new level. Cyberbullying has appeared.
Social media isn’t for spreading negativity but for inspiring people to be themselves and succeed in doing what they love. Users should feel free and comfortable expressing themselves online, but sometimes being open to the world makes you vulnerable.
Some people get stronger resisting negativity, but some people may get depressed and even broken.
How can we protect ourselves from negativity on the Internet? Let’s talk about it.
Blocking unwanted content
Social media platforms are interested in the safety of their resources for users. So now, fortunately, being active on social media is pretty safe and enjoyable.
Most social media platforms will block content if it’s spam or inappropriate, according to the rules of their platform.
Here are some criteria for posts that can be blocked and deleted:
- nudity or pornography
- hate speech
- racism
- homophobia
- sexism
- violence
- the sale or promotion of drugs
Social media platforms will also block or delete content with harassment and bullying.
Ads also must follow the same rules. For example, if you find an ad on Instagram offensive, you can report it and they will consider a complaint and block it if it violates community rules.
Filtering unwanted content
Instagram, specifically, offers many features to protect users from hate comments, unwanted messages and offensive content.
They have used artificial intelligence for years to detect bullying and other types of harmful content in comments, photos and videos.
In addition, on most platforms, you can always report any content you find unwanted.
Stopping plagiarism
Instagram, specifically, is against plagiarism and false information, so you can report it to them if anyone infringes on your copyright or trademark or spreads slander.
Seeing what you like
Aside from avoiding inappropriate content, do you have a preference over what types of content you see?
For example, if you don’t like some content, but it doesn’t violate community rules, you can cater your feed to your interests.
Most platforms already do this automatically, based on your friends, who you follow, what you tap on and what you like.
There’s a feature on Instagram that allows you to see fewer posts and keep types of content you haven’t liked off your feed.
On YouTube, you can also report any video you feel is inappropriate. If you report some content that gives you anxiety or offends you, you will see less of such kinds of videos after reporting them.
You can also take some random surveys on which channels you like or dislike. This helps YouTube target content that you like and put it into your recommendations.
Customizing your audience
On social media, people often judge personal information more than just pretty pictures.
“Close friends” is a feature on Instagram that allows you to limit the list of people with whom you want to share more private content.
Choosing your audience in this way can prevent unwanted reactions from appearing on your posts.
Anonymity
Sometimes, children and teenagers on social media are afraid to unfollow, block, or report posts because it could escalate the situation with the bully in real life.
That’s why Instagram is now working on a new feature called “Restrict”.
If you Restrict someone, comments on your posts from that person will not be visible to you or your followers. Such “restricted” people will not be able to see when you are active on Instagram or when you’ve read their direct messages. You can make a restricted person’s comments visible again to others by approving their comments.
New technology
In July 2019 Instagram started a new amazing feature powered by AI that notifies users if their comment may contain any offensive words before they publish it.
It really encourages people to undo their comment and write something less offensive by giving them a chance to think again.
This ultimately prevents the recipient from receiving the harmful comment.
A tool for support
The social media world is developing and improving its safety every day. Both the users and the people behind the platforms are driving this evolution.
Together, we can support each other and help make the internet safer.
