Instagram Continues Efforts to Suppress Online Abuse

Instagram is continuing its efforts to make the app a safe, positive place free from online abuse with their most recent update announcement.

The media-sharing app will be rolling out new features within the next few weeks to promote positivity, maintain privacy and provide help to specific users.

Users will now be able to tap a heart icon to “like” individual comments. The new feature is an effort to encourage positivity, according to CEO Kevin Systrom. In the past, users with a private account were forced to block followers they previously approved that they did not want as a follower anymore. Now, users with a private account will be able to remove certain followers to maintain the privacy of their content. The user being removed will not receive any notification that they have been removed as a follower. Instagram also enabled tools that allow users to anonymously report people who are potentially at risk for suicide or self harm. Systrom said that Instagram has around-the-clock teams that monitor the reports.

A few months ago, Instagram announced a filter for abusive words in users’ comment sections and has implemented a removal of the comment section for high-profile accounts, similar to how YouTube allows users to disable viewers from commenting.

These new features from Instagram are a continuation of recent efforts to rid the app of online abuse. Bye-bye Trolls.