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Just days ahead of the Digital Services Act (DSA) going into effect in Europe, a report has said that Meta is not doing enough to prevent the spread of hate speech and violent content in Facebook ads. According to the report, the company okayed a few ads that contained text that violated the company’s policies around hate speech and violence.
According to Ekō, a watchdog organisation, it attempted to buy 13 Facebook ads over a period of a few days in early August. These ads used AI-generated images and included text that was against the company’s rules.
It claimed that Meta approved some ads. An ad placed in France, “called for the execution of a prominent MEP because of their stance on immigration.” It also targeted German users and “called for synagogues to be burnt to the ground to ‘protect White Germans.’”
Meanwhile, an approved ad in Spain urged people to engage in violent protests to reverse the most recent election as it was stolen. Ekō said that it pulled the ads before they could be seen by any users.
“With a few clicks, we were able to prove just how easy it is for bad actors to spread hate speech and disinformation,” Vicky Wyatt, Ekō’s campaign director, said in a statement.
What Facebook has to say
A spokesperson for Meta said that the ads sample is not representative of the number the company reviews daily.
“This report was based on a very small sample of ads and is not representative of the number of ads we review daily across the world,” a spokesperson for Meta was quoted as saying.
“Our ads review process has several layers of analysis and detection, both before and after an ad goes live. We’re taking extensive steps in response to the DSA and continue to invest significant resources to protect elections and guard against hate speech as well as against violence and incitement,” the spokesperson added.
Meta stopped some ads
The report also noted that Meta stopped a handful of ads from running because they were flagged as political and not because of the violent and hate-filled rhetoric in them.
According to Ekō, a watchdog organisation, it attempted to buy 13 Facebook ads over a period of a few days in early August. These ads used AI-generated images and included text that was against the company’s rules.
It claimed that Meta approved some ads. An ad placed in France, “called for the execution of a prominent MEP because of their stance on immigration.” It also targeted German users and “called for synagogues to be burnt to the ground to ‘protect White Germans.’”
Meanwhile, an approved ad in Spain urged people to engage in violent protests to reverse the most recent election as it was stolen. Ekō said that it pulled the ads before they could be seen by any users.
“With a few clicks, we were able to prove just how easy it is for bad actors to spread hate speech and disinformation,” Vicky Wyatt, Ekō’s campaign director, said in a statement.
What Facebook has to say
A spokesperson for Meta said that the ads sample is not representative of the number the company reviews daily.
“This report was based on a very small sample of ads and is not representative of the number of ads we review daily across the world,” a spokesperson for Meta was quoted as saying.
“Our ads review process has several layers of analysis and detection, both before and after an ad goes live. We’re taking extensive steps in response to the DSA and continue to invest significant resources to protect elections and guard against hate speech as well as against violence and incitement,” the spokesperson added.
Meta stopped some ads
The report also noted that Meta stopped a handful of ads from running because they were flagged as political and not because of the violent and hate-filled rhetoric in them.
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