Facebook finally embraces 'panic button' to combat abuse

by Stevie Smith - Jul 12 2010, 12:15

In a move to increase levels of on-site safety and protection for its younger users, social networking service Facebook has introduced a special ‘panic button’ that children can click in order to quickly report instances of abuse.

Available through a quick and easy download, the panic button application is linked directly to the UK government’s Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (Ceop) and reports network-based abuse to both Ceop and Facebook.

“We know from speaking to offenders that a visible deterrent could protect young people online,” commented Joanna Shields, vice president of Facebook across Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).

“There is no single silver bullet to making the Internet safer,” she added, “but by joining forces with Ceop we have developed a comprehensive solution… and backed this with an awareness campaign to publicise it to young users.”

All Facebook users aged between 13 and 18 will soon receive an automatic advert message on their homepage that points them to the downloadable ClickCEOP application.

It’s worth noting that while late is certainly better than never, Facebook has reacted to the threat of online abuse a little slower than other socially focused outlets – such as Bebo and MySpace.

The world’s leading social platform initially resisted Ceop’s software application when it was approached by the agency back in November of 2009, confident that its existing solutions for reporting abuse and promoting user awareness were adequate.

However, the network has now embraced the panic button following the rape and murder of 17-year-old Ashleigh Hall, a Facebook user who was killed by a 33-year-old sex offender posing as a teenage boy, whom she met physically after connecting through Facebook.

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