Meta finally adds decent admin features for Facebook Groups

Facebook Groups on iOS
(Image credit: Facebook)

Meta has announced new features for admins in Facebook Groups to better moderate users' posts while making it easier for users to join in through QR codes.

While social networks have had the mammoth task of tightening up moderation, Meta has tried to improve its practices on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

But it's Facebook Groups that have been bearing the brunt of misinformation in recent times, which is why Meta is stepping up its cause to help out the admins of these groups with more powerful features.

However, it remains to be seen if these will make a big difference in the ever-changing world of 2022.


Analysis: Will new features be enough?

New admin features in Facebook Groups

(Image credit: Facebook)

The blog post states other new features, such as being able to automatically approve or decline new users, based on the answers that they give when applying to be part of a group. There's also another useful new feature that allows admins to suspend users who have already had their recent posts muted, and their new posts still break the guidelines of the group

Meta has stated that it has 1.8 billion people that use Facebook Groups, with over half of all its users being members of five or more active groups, so new features for admins to help moderate these posts will always be welcome.

However, these are the types of features that should have been there years ago. Our US Editor-in-Chief, Lance Ulanoff has been receiving prompts to tighten up his security on Facebook, with a feature called Facebook Protect.

Facebook Protect in iOS

(Image credit: TechRadar)

The consequence of not enabling Facebook Protect is a full-lock-out of your account, restricting you from accessing the social media website.

This looks to be applicable to accounts with blue ticks for now, but there's always a chance that Meta will open this up to all users as an added security feature.

This comes back to Meta's stance on security and moderation. While it's welcome to see these updates for Facebook Groups, its approach to challenging misinformation on Pages statuses, Reels and even photos still has a long way to go to correct the narrative for current news around the world.

Daryl Baxter
Software & Downloads Writer

Daryl had been freelancing for 3 years before joining TechRadar, now reporting on everything software-related. In his spare time, he's written a book, 'The Making of Tomb Raider'. His second book, '50 Years of Boss Fights', came out in 2024, with a third book coming in 2025. He also has a newsletter called 'Springboard'. He's usually found playing games old and new on his Steam Deck, Nintendo Switch, and MacBook Pro. If you have a story about an updated app, one that's about to launch, or just anything Software-related, drop him a line.

Read more
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams is getting one of Facebook's worst features, and I can't see why you'd ever use it
Honor's Deepfake Detection feature on an orange background
I hope this AI deepfake detection feature comes to more phones soon – but it needs one key upgrade to be truly useful
Meta outage
Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Threads were down - here's what you need to know
WhatsApp
WhatsApp looks set to get an AI makeover soon – here's what could be coming
In this photo illustration, the Meta Platforms, Inc. logo is displayed on a smartphone screen.
Meta says it has fired several employees for leaking internal data
Meta AI on a smartphone
Meta wants to fill your social media feeds with bots – here's why I think it's wrong
Latest in Facebook
The Meta logo on a smartphone in front of the Facebook logo a little bit blurred in the background
Meta's new 'Link History' feature for the Facebook app isn't as protective of your data as it claims
The Meta Quest 3 in action
How much more data can Meta collect? Probably a lot, thanks to the Meta Quest 3 and Ray-Ban smart glasses
A laptop screen showing a Facebook Groups page
Scam alert: how to spot hoax posts in your Facebook Groups
Facebook
Facebook Messenger is losing a useful messaging feature soon
mother watching her daughter's activity online
Meta's new Facebook parental controls show social media still doesn't like responsibility
Phone screen closeup showing the download page for the Facebook app in the app store.
Meta wants to create a Facebook app store to compete with Apple's App Store and Google Play
Latest in News
An operator fires a saw blade from a weapon
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Season 3 gets two-week delay, will now release in April
Apple iPad A16
Apple's new entry-level iPad ups the performance for the same price, but doesn't support Apple Intelligence
iPad Air M3
Apple updates iPad Air with powerful M3 chip and pairs it with Pro-level Magic Keyboard
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 in blue
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 might improve on its predecessor in one crucial way
Nvidia RTX 5070 Founders Edition GPU shown against a green and black backdrop
Nvidia RTX 5070 early pricing hints at plenty of GPUs at the MSRP – but I’ll believe it when I see it
US President Donald Trump speaks to the press as he signs an executive order to create a US sovereign wealth fund, in the Oval Office of the White House on February 3, 2025, in Washington, DC.
US set to pause cyber-offensive operations against Russia - but CISA says it won't stop