Here's how Facebook is trying to eliminate 'revenge porn'

In an effort to improve the safety and well-being of its users, Facebook is launching new tools to keep revenge porn off of its site.

The system works similar to reporting other policy-violating images on the social media service, allowing users to flag intimate images believed to have been shared without the subject's consent to a Facebook review team.

From there, the team assesses if the photo violates Facebook's community standards, removing it and also disabling the account behind the post if it's believed not have posted it without permission.

The next phase is a lot more tech-heavy, as Facebook uses photo-matching systems to stop further posting or sharing of the image on not just Facebook, but Messenger and Instagram as well. 

Facebook will inform any user whose image is blocked that it did so on the grounds it violated the site's policy, with those who genuinely own the photo and consent to its viewing having a chance to make an appeal if there's been a mistake. 

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A major issue

Revenge porn, also known as non-consensual pornography, is certainly no small issue for Facebook to tackle.

Often shared alongside other compromising details such as a full name or contact information, revenge porn can both devastate a victim's safety online as well as cause a great deal of real-world harm.

A whopping 93% of individuals claim to have experienced severe emotional distress from their image being shared without permission, with 82% also reporting significant impairment with work, social interaction, and other important functionality, according to a 2013 study from the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative.

For more details about reporting revenge porn on Facebook, as well as advice on what to do in the unfortunate scenario of having your intimate images uploaded without your permission, Facebook offers a resource pamphlet you can read here.

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