Meta to change some of its rules regarding doxxing in response to recommendations from the Board of Supervisors. The company first called on the oversight body for its rules last June, saying the policy was “significant and difficult”. The board followed with 17 recommendations for the company, which Meta has now weighed up.
As opposed to decisions on whether or not to remove specific items, Meta is free to completely ignore policy proposals from the Board, but is required to respond to each recommendation individually.
One of the most notable changes is that Meta has agreed to end an exception to its existing rules that allowed users to post private residence information if it was “publicly available” elsewhere. The Oversight Board had pointed out that there is a significant difference between receiving data from a public records request and a viral social media post.
In its Friday response, Meta agreed to remove the exception from its policy. “As the Board notes in this advisory, the removal of the exception for ‘publicly available’ private residential information may limit the availability of that information on Facebook and Instagram when it is still publicly available elsewhere,” the company wrote. “However, we recognize that implementing this recommendation can strengthen privacy protections on our platforms.” Meta added that the policy change will be implemented “by the end of the year.”
While the company was ending one exception, it agreed to relax its policy in another area. Meta said users can share photos of the outside of private homes “when the property depicted is the focus of the news, except when shared in connection with organizing protests against the resident.” The company also agreed that it would allow users to share addresses of “high-ranking” government officials if the property is a public official residence, such as that used by heads of state and ambassadors.
The policy changes could have a significant impact on people facing harassment, while allowing some information related to news or protests against elected officials to be shared.
The board had also recommended that Meta revise the way data breaches are reported by users and how reports are handled internally. On the reporting front, Meta said it has already started experimenting with a simpler way to report privacy intrusions. Previously, users had to “click through two menus” and manually search for “privacy breach,” but now the option is presented without the additional search. Meta said the results of the experiment will be available “later this month” when deciding whether to make the change permanent.
In particular, Meta declined to make another change that could make it easier for doxxing victims to get help more quickly. The company said it would not act on a recommendation that it would “create a dedicated communication channel for doxing victims,” whether or not they are Facebook users. Meta noted that it’s already piloting some Help features, but said it “cannot commit to building a doxing-specific channel.”
Meta also commented noncommittally on a board recommendation that doxxing should be classified as a “serious” violation, resulting in a temporary suspension. The company said it was “assessing the feasibility” of the proposal and “assessing ways to incorporate elements of that recommendation.”
In addition to the content of the policy changes, Meta’s response to the oversight board in this case is notable as it is the first time the company has asked for a , received referrals and issued a response. Typically, the board will weigh certain moderation decisions, which may then impact the underlying policies. But meta can also ask for help in designing more general rules, as was the case with doxxing. The company has also asked for help in creating rules System.
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