- Meta partners with nonprofits amid scrutiny over online safety.
- Pilot provides researchers with privacy-preserving data to study social media’s impact.
- It continues facing pressure to adapt protections for children online.
Ahead of testifying to Congress about protecting children online, Meta announced it will provide select researchers with privacy-preserving data to study social media’s impact on well-being. The pilot collaboration with the transparency nonprofit Center for Open Science comes as Meta faces escalating pressure over safety issues.
Still facing scrutiny?
Meta has long faced calls from academics to share more data for mental health research.
In November 2022, it expanded access through its Content Library transparency tool. But scrutiny is peaking as CEO Mark Zuckerberg appears Wednesday alongside TikTok, Snap, and others at a Congressional hearing on children’s online safety.
New messaging restrictions for teens
In addition to the research initiative, Meta recently rolled out new teen messaging restrictions on Facebook and Instagram.
Users under 16 will be opted out of messages from non-followed adults, with guardians able to approve changes to default privacy settings. Meta also enacted measures to limit teens’ access to certain sensitive content.
Adapting to new protections
The moves follow lawsuits exposing Meta’s past reluctance on child safety issues. Other platforms like TikTok and X are also adopting new protections ahead of the hearing but continue facing incidents – like AI-generated fake pornography recently going viral on X.
Meta’s latest research collaboration aims to demonstrate commitment to transparency on social media’s impacts on well-being. But substantive change may rely more on potential legislative action.
