For years now, Twitter has been rolling out tool after tool designed to combat harassment and abuse. While the company says these initiatives are working — despite a lack of data — it’s also doubling down on its efforts: Twitter will soon roll out another set of changes to protect users. [More]
social media
Facebook May Soon Let You Unlock Account With Your Face
By 10.2.17
While two-factor authentication is a very handy tool for regaining access to your accounts if you get locked out or forget your password, sometimes getting a text message or an email isn’t possible. That’s why Facebook has confirmed it’s looking into using facial recognition as a way to verify a user’s identity. [More]
The Latest Powerball Winner Is Not Trying To Be Your Facebook Friend Or Give You Money
By 8.29.17
You’re probably a really nice person. However, that doesn’t mean that the winner of last week’s record Powerball multi-state lottery jackpot wants to be your pal on social media, or wants to give you money. Profiles that impersonate the real winner and promise to give money away to her followers are not real. [More]
Facebook Cracking Down On Video Clickbait In The Newsfeed
By 8.18.17
If you’ve ever clicked on what looks like an interesting video promising “17 Ways You’re Eating Cheese Wrong,” only to find yourself on a spammy website that has nothing to do with cheese, you know how frustrating such clickbait can be. Facebook is now introducing new updates aimed at keeping those deceptive posts out of your news feed. [More]
All Of My Instagram Photos Have Disappeared. What Now?
By 8.10.17
Remember the Consumerist reader who had temporarily deactivated his Instagram account, then reactivated it, only to find that he’d lost all of his photos? Yeah, that’s still happening to people, and Instagram is now admitting that this is an issue. [More]
Facebook Changing Its News Feed Again, Here’s What To Expect
By 8.3.17
Facebook is continually updating its Newsfeed algorithm and what users see, from testing auto-play ads to reducing clickbait. Now, the social media behemoth is at it again, this time giving pages that load faster higher priority in your feed and offering fact-checked articles when false news articles are posted. [More]
Twitter Claims Anti-Abuse Tools Are Working — But Where’s The Data?
By 7.20.17
After launching various new efforts to combat harassment and abuse, Twitter says it’s doing a bangup job of making users feel safer on the platform. But that’s according to internal data, hard numbers the company isn’t sharing — at least, not yet. [More]
Amazon Spark: Like Instagram, But Dedicated To Convincing You To Buy Stuff
By 7.19.17
Have you ever found yourself scrolling through your Instagram feed and thinking, “Gee, all these photos of my friends’ meals and their feet are great; but I really wish every single photo was an ad for a product?” It just so happens that Amazon has something just like that. [More]
United CEO: Social Media Means People Will Pay Attention When Passengers Are Dragged Off Planes
By 7.19.17
Months after United Airlines found itself in the middle of a social media crap storm over a video of a ticketed passenger being dragged off a flight so an employee could take his seat, the airline’s CEO admits that the company has to learn to adjust to rapid spread of news online. [More]
Here’s How Easy It Is To Hack A Myspace Account — And How To Delete Yours
By 7.17.17
If you still have a Myspace account sitting at the back of your virtual Internet closet, it might be time to dust it off and consider deleting it: A security researcher says it’s ridiculously easy for anyone to hack into accounts using the site’s account recovery feature. [More]
Facebook Is Ready For Its Close-Up, Wants To Get Into Scripted TV Shows
By 6.26.17
Not content to let Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu corner the market on original streaming TV shows, Facebook is reportedly trying to carve out a spot for itself in the entertainment business with its own scripted programming. [More]
Snapchat Wants To Help You Stalk Your Friends With New Map Feature
By 6.21.17
Because there is apparently no such thing as oversharing on social media these days, Snapchat is rolling out a new “Snap Map” feature that lets users creep on where their friends are posting photos from. [More]
Instagram Makes It Easier For ‘Influencers’ To Tag Sponsored Posts
By 6.14.17
Consumer watchdogs and the federal government have been cracking down on undisclosed “stealth” advertising on social media — particularly Instagram, where celebrities of all stripes have been caught shilling for products without disclosing they were compensated. In an effort to make it easier for these “influencers” to be more transparent about sponsored posts, Instagram has launched a new “paid partnership” label. [More]
McDonald’s Now Accepting Job Applications Via Snapchat
By 6.12.17
As part of an effort to hire 250,000 workers this summer, McDonald’s is expanding into social media to lure the millennial set: It’ll be accepting applications via Snapchat. [More]
Reebok Takes On Nordstrom With $425 ‘Sweat-Stained Shirt’
By 4.27.17 — Updated: 5.9.17
Earlier this week, Nordstrom came under fire for its latest entry in the “crimes against jeans” files. While Twitter mercilessly mocked the department store for its $425 jeans with “caked-on-muddy coating,” at least one other retailer was apparently waiting in the wings with its own joke: Reebok debuted a pre-sweat-stained t-shirt, for you guessed it, $425. [More]
Wendy’s Recipe For A Big Mac: “Dash Of Shame… 2 Spoonfuls Of Disappointment”
By 4.14.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
Whatever you feel about Wendy’s food, you have to respect any national brand that’s willing to let its Twitter account behave like that tipsy cousin at a wedding reception who doesn’t really care what you think about their outfit or dance moves. [More]
Facebook Unveils Photo-Matching Tool In Effort To Crack Down On Revenge Porn
By 4.5.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
Two years ago, Facebook clarified its approach to complaints about supposedly offensive posts. Now, the company is circling back, releasing new tools to ensure people can’t re-share intimate images previously reported and tagged as revenge porn. [More]
Twitter Ditching Default Egg Profile Photos Because They’re Tied To “Negative Behavior”
By 3.31.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
If you want to harass your fellow internet denizens on Twitter, you’ll have to do it without the cover of an anonymous egg in your profile photo: The social media site says it’s doing away with its default avatar, partly because it’s become associated with online harassment and other bad behaviors. [More]
