March 17th, 2021
Dado Ruvic / Reuters
Facebook is taking one of its most significant steps to limit the influence and reach of problematic groups. On Wednesday, the company announced a long list of policy changes that will impose new restrictions on individuals and communities who repeatedly break its rules.
The most visible of those changes is a new notification people will see when joining groups with past Community Standards violations. The message will prompt you to review a group before joining — though you're not obligated to do so. Simultaneously, Facebook will limit invite notifications from those groups. Those who are already in such communities will see content from the group appear lower in their News Feed. "We think these measures as a whole, along with demoting groups in recommendations, will make it harder to discover and engage with groups that break our rules," the company said.