On the same day whistleblower before Congress about the harms of Facebook and Instagram to children in the fall of 2021, Arturo Bejar, then a contractor at the social media giant, sent an alarming email to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg about the same topic.

In the note, as first reported by , Bejar, who worked as an engineering director at Facebook from 2009 to 2015, outlined a 91裸聊视频渃ritical gap91裸聊视频� between how the company approached harm and how the people who use its products 91裸聊视频� most notably young people 91裸聊视频� experience it.

91裸聊视频淭wo weeks ago my daughter, 16, and an experimenting creator on Instagram, made a post about cars, and someone commented 91裸聊视频楪et back to the kitchen.91裸聊视频� It was deeply upsetting to her,91裸聊视频� he wrote. 91裸聊视频淎t the same time the comment is far from being policy violating, and our tools of blocking or deleting mean that this person will go to other profiles and continue to spread misogyny. I don91裸聊视频檛 think policy/reporting or having more content review are the solutions.91裸聊视频�

Bejar believes that Meta needs to change how it polices its platforms, with a focus on addressing harassment, unwanted sexual advances and other bad experiences even if these problems don91裸聊视频檛 clearly violate existing policies. For instance, sending vulgar sexual messages to children doesn91裸聊视频檛 necessarily break Instagram91裸聊视频檚 rules, but Bejar said teens should have a way to tell the platform they don91裸聊视频檛 want to receive these types of messages.

Two years later, Bejar is testifying before on Tuesday about social media and the teen mental health crisis, hoping to shed light on how Meta executives, including Zuckerberg, knew about the harms Instagram was causing but chose not to make meaningful changes to address them.

91裸聊视频淚 can safely say that Meta91裸聊视频檚 executives knew the harm that teenagers were experiencing, that there were things that they could do that are very doable and that they chose not to do them,91裸聊视频� Bejar told The Associated Press. This, he said, makes it clear that 91裸聊视频渨e can91裸聊视频檛 trust them with our children.91裸聊视频�

Bejar points to user perception surveys that show, for instance, that 13% of Instagram users 91裸聊视频� ages 13-15 91裸聊视频� reported having received unwanted sexual advances on the platform within the previous seven days.

In his prepared remarks, Bejar is expected to say he doesn91裸聊视频檛 believe the reforms he91裸聊视频檚 suggesting would significantly affect revenue or profits for Meta and its peers. They are not intended to punish the companies, he said, but to help teenagers.

91裸聊视频淵ou heard the company talk about it 91裸聊视频榦h this is really complicated,91裸聊视频�91裸聊视频� Bejar told the AP. 91裸聊视频淣o, it isn91裸聊视频檛. Just give the teen a chance to say 91裸聊视频榯his content is not for me91裸聊视频� and then use that information to train all of the other systems and get feedback that makes it better.91裸聊视频�

The testimony comes amid a bipartisan push in Congress to adopt regulations aimed at protecting children online.

Meta, in a statement, said 91裸聊视频淓very day countless people inside and outside of Meta are working on how to help keep young people safe online. The issues raised here regarding user perception surveys highlight one part of this effort, and surveys like these have led us to create features like and . Working with parents and experts, we have also introduced over to support teens and their families in having safe, positive experiences online. All of this work continues.91裸聊视频�

Regarding unwanted material users see that does not violate Instagram91裸聊视频檚 rules, Meta points to its 2021 91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频� that say 91裸聊视频減roblematic or low quality91裸聊视频� content automatically receives reduced distribution on users91裸聊视频� feeds. This includes clickbait, misinformation that91裸聊视频檚 been fact-checked and 91裸聊视频渂orderline91裸聊视频� posts, such as a 91裸聊视频漰hoto of a person posing in a sexually suggestive manner, speech that includes profanity, borderline hate speech, or gory images.91裸聊视频�

In 2022, Meta also introduced 91裸聊视频渒indness reminders91裸聊视频� that tell users to be respectful in their direct messages 91裸聊视频� but it only applies to users who are sending message requests to a creator, not a regular user.

Bejar91裸聊视频檚 testimony comes just two weeks after for harming young people and contributing to the youth mental health crisis. The lawsuits, filed in state and federal courts, claim that Meta knowingly and deliberately designs features on Instagram and Facebook that addict children to its platforms.

Bejar said it is 91裸聊视频渁bsolutely essential91裸聊视频� that Congress passes bipartisan legislation 91裸聊视频渢o help ensure that there is transparency about these harms and that teens can get help91裸聊视频� with the support of the right experts.

91裸聊视频淭he most effective way to regulate social media companies is to require them to develop metrics that will allow both the company and outsiders to evaluate and track instances of harm, as experienced by users. This plays to the strengths of what these companies can do, because data for them is everything,91裸聊视频� he wrote in his prepared .

Barbara Ortutay, The Associated Press