Facebook forms team to spot troubles before they arise
San Francisco, June 24: Facebook has hired a team of ex-intelligence officers, researchers and media buyers to find the worst possible things that can be done using the platform and to help the company prevent them.
The group is called "Investigative Operations Team" and is testing the company's advertising systems, pages, Instagram, Messenger and more, BuzzFeed News reported on Saturday.
The team is searching for troubling behaviour, examining keywords and other signals that could be used to promote violence. It is also investigating Facebook's merchant tools, attempting to spot problematic product sales.
"What we have now is a series of people who are truly looking for how could you possibly do something wrong," said Lynda Talgo, the Facebook Business Integrity Director.
"Their entire job is to look forward and figure out what's coming around the corner," she added.
Facebook's creation of this team is the latest sign of an ongoing mindset shift among Silicon Valley's giants who are realising they can't simply assume the best of their users and must prepare for the worst behaviour imaginable.
Google has set up an "Intelligence Desk" at YouTube which is meant to detect controversial content before it mushrooms into crisis.
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India denied Pope Francis’ visit, say Bishops; ‘government did not open the door’
New Delhi: Following the death of Pope Francis at the age of 88, senior Indian bishops have expressed sorrow not only over his passing but also over what they describe as a missed opportunity for India, reported Maktoob Media.
According to Delhi Archbishop Anil Joseph Thomas Couto and Thamarassery Bishop Mar Remigiose Inchananiyil, the Indian government repeatedly failed to grant permission for the Pope's long-awaited visit, despite consistent interest from the Vatican.
“He too was waiting,” said Archbishop Couto. “Five years ago, he had said, ‘I am knocking on the doors of your government, but they are not opening the doors to me.’ Now maybe God has opened the doors for him in heaven.” His words echoed deep regret that India never hosted the late pontiff, who had made clear his intention to visit the country.
Bishop Inchananiyil reinforced the sentiment, stating, “The Pope had a special desire to visit India. Unfortunately, our doors did not open. That caused him great sorrow.”
The Pope’s unfulfilled visit has drawn renewed scrutiny toward the Indian government’s apparent reluctance, despite earlier gestures suggesting otherwise. At the G7 summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had publicly extended an invitation to Pope Francis, and Union Minister George Kurien had emphasized that both the Indian state and the Christian community were awaiting his visit. However, the formal diplomatic process that would enable such a trip never reached fruition.
India has not hosted a papal visit in over 25 years. The last visit was by Pope John Paul II in 1999, who also made a significant trip in 1986. Prior to that, Pope Paul VI had visited Mumbai in 1964 for the International Eucharistic Congress, marking the first-ever papal visit to the country.
Despite India being home to one of the largest Catholic populations in Asia greater than in many Christian-majority nations such as East Timor, Papua New Guinea, and Singapore the late pontiff was never able to set foot on Indian soil. In 2017, his planned visit fell through when India did not extend an official invitation, leading him instead to visit neighboring Myanmar and Bangladesh.
