Facebook has been blocked in Russia It’s trying to help users in Ukraine. Meta also known as Facebook has revealed a range of initiatives aimed at helping users in Ukraine The company states. This announcement comes as Facebook has been officially banned in Russia.
While the world watch in horror, cities across Ukraine are falling one after the other and, now Meta is out in full support. The announcement comes as Facebook has been blocked in Russia.
In an announcement, the company said that their thoughts are with those who have been affected by the conflict in Ukraine. We’re taking a number of actions throughout our apps to protect our users and to support users of our services, both in Ukraine and all over the world.
Here are a few examples of the actions that Meta took to help the citizens of Ukraine.
Helping to Protect People Meta has introduced several security measures in Ukraine as well as Russia in reaction to the situation in the field.
The Locking Your Profile feature allows users to secure their Facebook profile in a single step. If a profile is blocked, users who aren’t friends with them can’t download, share or enlarge the profile picture, nor are they able to view posts or other pictures that are posted on their profile, no matter the time they posted it. Meta’s teams work with non-governmental organizations as well as civil society groups to ensure that users are aware that the tools are there.
Friends Lists Meta is temporarily removing the ability to see and search the lists of friends for Facebook users within Ukraine as well as Russia to protect users against being targeted.
Instagram Security and Privacy: Meta is sending everyone who uses Instagram within Ukraine and Russia an upper-feed message about account security and privacy. For accounts with public profiles, Meta is reminding them to verify their settings if they decide to keep your accounts public. If someone chooses to make the account public, all new followers need to be approved before those who have been approved are able to view their posts and their stories. If you already have accounts that are private, Meta is sharing tips on how to keep their accounts safe by using secure passwords as well as two-factor authentication. We’ve also made secure one-to-one chats on Instagram for all users who live in Ukraine as well as Russia.
Security and Privacy on Messenger: Meta has increased the number of tools that are available for Messenger Users across Ukraine and Russia for example, via the rapid release of notifications of images of messages disappearing in our encrypted chats that are end-to-end secure.
Secure messaging on WhatsApp Personal messages as well as calls are protected by encryption that is end-to-end, so they can’t be accessed by any government agency. Users can now make use of “view only once” medium to share pictures or videos that disappear after being viewed as well as “disappearing modes” to erase new chats within 24 hours to secure data in the event of losing your phone.
Eliminating the Spread of Misinformation
Meta is taking significant measures to stop the spread of misleading information through its applications and continues to seek out outside experts. This includes taking down any content that is in violation of our rules and regulations and extending our cooperation with third-party fact-checkers from the region to expose the falsehoods so that we can assist in ensuring that less people view these false claims.
META GLOBALLY PROMOTING CONTENT
Meta is now beginning to degrade content across the world, including Facebook Pages as well as Instagram accounts that are controlled by state media outlets, to make them more difficult to locate on its platforms. Meta is also preventing advertisements from Russian state-controlled media. They have also removed their currency from their accounts.
To provide reliable and accurate information In order to ensure that reliable information is available, the Ukraine’s State Emergency Services has launched an information assistance line on WhatsApp. The service is free and will provide users with crucial information, accurate updates and details on emergency response methods. To make use of the free helpline via WhatsApp you just need to add the number +380676785917 into your phone’s contacts. Then, send”begin” (begin) in the WhatsApp message to begin.
Since February 23rd over twenty million dollars has been raised by charities through Facebook and Instagram to support humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.
Facebook Groups were created to assist people in need. One of them is an organization of 200, 000 Romanian volunteer and donor who coordinate accommodation and transportation for refugees. Additionally, a group of over 300,000 in Poland offers accommodation, clothing, and transportation from the border to people in need.
Meta will also contribute $15 million to aid in humanitarian initiatives in Ukraine and the countries around it.