YouTube’s ‘recommendations’ still pushing harmful videos
YouTube’s recommendation algorithm is reportedly guilty of sharing videos featuring misinformation, violence, hate speech, and other content in violation of its own policies. With more than 2 billion monthly visitors, and a billion hours of content viewed every day, YouTube remains the undisputed mecca of long form video content in...
Current in Social
Big tech threatens to quit Hong Kong over vague privacy laws
An internet coalition including Facebook, Google, Apple, Twitter, and Amazon could be about to halt its services in Hong Kong if a proposed anti-doxxing law is to go ahead. Big tech is getting serious about free expression, and an entire region now faces the possibility of being unfriended. A Singapore-based internet...
Frame is the one-stop portal for ‘approachable’ therapy online
As mental health services continue migrating online, Frame is providing a portal to make therapy feel more ‘approachable’ for clients and accessible for practitioners. Covid-19, for better or worse, has shaken up countless industries over the last 18 months and the face of therapy looks to have changed forever. Being forced...
Gen Z are learning the stock market game through social media
According to new data, 41% of all Gen Z investors educated themselves on the stock market and cryptocurrency through social media - predominantly TikTok and Instagram. It appears the meme-stock mania is no short lived thing, and Gen Z intend to mix it with Wall Street suits for the foreseeable...
Wildlife trafficking increases on Facebook despite ban
Social media platforms are being utilised by dealers in the wildlife trade to connect with potential buyers. Despite Facebook imposing a ban on animal trafficking, the practice has increased online. Like many businesses that were forced to develop a stronger online market presence due to the global pandemic, dealers in...
iOS 15’s face and thumb ID to revolutionise password security?
Apple believes biometrics are the natural successor to our manual passwords, offering increased security and convenience. We’ll soon put that notion to the test with the rollout of iOS 15. If you’re one of life’s rarest breeds: a person who has never forgotten a password, chances are the ones...
Exclusive – Impactr, the app turning social media into social change
Thred has been given an exclusive, pre-launch peek at new app Impactr, the self-proclaimed ‘anti-Amazon’ about to revolutionise online interaction. What’s next in social media? It’s a question people have asked themselves since David Fincher’s The Social Network premiered in 2010, seemingly the swan song of a digital juggernaut that was fast losing its novel sheen and youth-centric flavour. Throughout the 2010s, we’ve gone through various incarnations of the connected media...
Instagram launches ‘hide likes’ feature
The option for users to hide the number of 'likes' on their posts and timeline is now live on Instagram. The company’s CEO calls it an effort to make the platform a ‘safer place on the internet.’ After months of randomised user-testing on the ‘no-likes’ feature, anyone with an Instagram account can now hide the number of likes on their posts (as well as others on the timeline) by turning...
TikTok users can now report and delete harassing comments in bulk
TikTok has finally simplified removing and reporting harassment comments in its latest update. Going forward, it aims to regulate content as thoroughly as its social network predecessors. TikTok’s algorithm can rocket both amateur and seasoned creators to viral stardom in an instant, and that throws up obvious red flags when it comes regulating comments and direct messages. Now, in just its third year, the leading vertical video app is fully aware...
Snapchat to shift further into ecommerce with AR features
It looks like Snapchat is headed down the same path as Instagram with its newly announced features intended to boost ecommerce opportunities. Long time Instagram users may remember when it decided to introduce a bunch of new features last year - for better or worse - that promoted shopping and ecommerce from inside the app. Now, in an unsurprising move, Snapchat wants in on the ecommerce hype. Last week it...
