After criticism: Facebook broadens the use of Safety Check – IDG.se

With a simple tools on Facebook, people could tell friends and acquaintances if they were unharmed after the terrorist attack in Paris. A welcome tool that quickly won appreciation among users.

But the criticism was not long in coming. Why was not Safety Check after the attacks in Paris, but not when Beirut was hit just the day before? Why did the social network French flag photo filters and not the Lebanese? Pure hypocrisy and double standards wrote critical voices.

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 In the wake of the discussions that occurred, Mark Zuckerberg announced that the tool will be used more frequently in situations where many people affected by a disaster, reports IDG News.

 

 “Many people have rightly asked why we turned on the Safety Check for Paris but not after the bombings in Beirut and other places. Until yesterday was our policy to only activate the Safety Check to natural disasters. We have just changed this and plan to activate the tool for more human disasters in the future, “he wrote in a post on its own page.

 

 The first time the service was used was in Tokyo after the tsunami there in 2011. Since then it has been used after earthquakes in Afghanistan, Chile and Nepal and after the cyclone Pam in the Pacific and Ruby typhoon that hit the Philippines hard.

 

 Until now, the service only started when there was a natural disaster and the criteria based on the scope, scale and impact. The decision to activate the service after the attacks in Paris are simply based on the platform quickly became a place where people turned to find family, friends and acquaintances. There was a need to fill, writes Alex Schultz, one of Facebook’s managers, in a post. He added that there may be current even at similar events in the future.

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 However, the tool is in its current form is not useful during crises such as wars or epidemics.

 

 “There is no clear start or end point, and it is unfortunately impossible to determine if someone is really safe,” writes Alex Schultz.

 

 When it comes to the ability to choose a French flag as a filter to their profile picture, but not the Lebanese Zuckerberg answered:

 
“We care about all people equally, and we will work hard to help so many suffering we can in situations like these.”

 

 Safety Check for Paris is now shut down.