Facebook rolls out suicide prevention tools around the world
Facebook has announced that an updated batch of suicide prevention tools are being rolled out globally. It's a feature that has been available in some parts of the English-speaking world for a little while, but now the social network has decided to offer them up to everyone.
The aim is to make it easier for people to reach out to friends who they believe may be either suicidal, or at risk of self-harming. The tools have been developed in conjunction with people with experience of suicide and self-harm, as well as mental health charities. In addition to giving Facebook users the chance to reach out to those they may be concerned about, Facebook is also providing a round-the-clock worldwide team to whom concerns can be voiced.
When Twitter launched a similar venture a couple of years ago, the micro-blogging service faced criticism from some quarters. But this did not stop Facebook from rolling out its own suicide prevention tools in the US, and then the UK. In opening up the feature to the whole world, and all languages, Facebook hopes to be able to help more people than ever before.
Facebook says:
Today we're updating the resources we offer to people around the world who may be experiencing self-injury or suicidal thoughts, as well as the support we offer to their concerned friends and family members.
Developed in collaboration with mental health organizations and with input from people who have personal experience with self-injury and suicide, these tools first launched in the US with the help of Forefront, Lifeline, and Save.org.
With the help of these new tools, if someone posts something on Facebook that makes you concerned about their well-being, you can reach out to them directly -- and you also can also report the post to us. We have teams working around the world, 24/7, who review reports that come in. They prioritize the most serious reports like self-injury.
There will clearly be those who will view this as a potential invasion of privacy, but Facebook has successfully batted away such complaints where the tools have already launched.