Stanford Internet Observatory

🌟 Feeling inspired and energized after TrustCon? 🌟 Keep the momentum going with trailblazing research and riveting discussions at the Trust & Safety Research Conference at Stanford University. We’re beyond excited to unveil our agenda, packed with lightning talks, research presentations, panels, workshops, and a poster session. Get ready for a stellar lineup of speakers, including our amazing keynotes, Camille François and Arvind Narayanan. Join us to gain insights from researchers, industry practitioners, and experts, in the Trust & Safety community! 🌐✨ 🎟️ Don’t wait—grab your tickets now before the early bird offer ends on August 1! Links in the description.

Registration is now open for the Stanford Internet Observatory's third annual Trust & Safety Research Conference, taking place on September 26-27, 2024, at Stanford University. 📍 Hosted at Stanford University’s Frances. C. Arrillaga Alumni Center, the Trust & Safety Research Conference convenes participants working on trust and safety issues across academia, industry, civil society, and government. The event brings together a cross-disciplinary group of academics and researchers in fields including computer science, sociology, law, and political science to connect with practitioners and policymakers on challenges and new ideas for studying and addressing online trust and safety issues. Early bird discounted registration is now available! Secure your spot today https://lnkd.in/gNK-BCFx

Announcing a new special issue of the Journal of Online Trust and Safety: “Online Harassment in Authoritarian and Semi-democratic States” 📖 🌐 The issue features an introductory essay by guest editor Tongtong Zhang with two peer-reviewed articles: “Wangbao (Cyberbullying) and Jubao (Reporting): Collaborative State-Society Online Influence Operations in China” - Kecheng Fang “Proactive Blocking through the Automated Identification of Likely Harassers” - Ifat Gazia, Trevor Hubbard, Timothy Scalona, Yena Kang, and Ethan Zuckerman   The two papers examine coordinated mass reporting of social media accounts from interviews with targets of harassment campaigns. They find bad actors leverage strategic ambiguity and the introductory essay highlights how these tactics complement other pro-government repressive measures online. https://lnkd.in/dDSQy7KC

Today the Stanford Internet Observatory launched a new report: “The Strengths and Weaknesses of the Online Child Safety Ecosystem: Perspectives from Platforms, NCMEC, and Law Enforcement on the CyberTipline and How to Improve It.” The CyberTipline is the main line of defense for children who are exploited on the internet. It leads to the rescue of children and the arrest of abusers. Yet many believe the entire system does not always live up to its potential. Our new report explores why. If U.S. platforms discover child sexual abuse material, federal law requires they report it to the CyberTipline, which is run by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, a nonprofit. NCMEC then forwards the reports to law enforcement. It is well known that law enforcement are overwhelmed with the volume of CyberTipline reports. Our contribution is to show that law enforcement feel unable to accurately prioritize reports that are most likely to lead to the rescue of a child being abused. We find this is the case because: 1. Many online platforms submit low-quality reports.  2. NCMEC has faced challenges in rapidly implementing technological improvements that would aid law enforcement in triage. 3. Legal constraints on NCMEC and U.S. law enforcement have implications for efficiency. We argue these issues would be best addressed by a concerted effort to massively uplift NCMEC's technical and analytical capabilities, which will require the cooperation of platforms, NCMEC, law enforcement and, importantly, the U.S. Congress. Our full report and specific recommendations are here: https://lnkd.in/gJVtHPyv Shelby Grossman Riana Pfefferkorn David T. Sara Shah Alex Stamos Renee DiResta John Perrino Elena Cryst Jeff Hancock

NEW REPORT: The Strengths and Weaknesses of the Online Child Safety Ecosystem: Perspectives from Platforms, NCMEC, and Law Enforcement on the CyberTipline and How to Improve It The CyberTipline is the main line of defense for children who are exploited on the internet. It leads to the rescue of children and the arrest of abusers. Yet many believe the entire system does not always live up to its potential. Our new report explores why. If U.S. platforms discover child sexual abuse material, federal law requires they report it to the CyberTipline, which is run by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, a nonprofit. NCMEC then forwards the reports to law enforcement. It is well known that law enforcement are overwhelmed with the volume of CyberTipline reports. Our contribution is to show that law enforcement feel unable to accurately prioritize reports that are most likely to lead to the rescue of a child being abused. Through interviews with 66 respondents, we explain why. 1. Many online platforms submit low-quality reports. 2. NCMEC has faced challenges in rapidly implementing technological improvements that would aid law enforcement in triage. 3. Legal constraints on NCMEC and U.S. law enforcement have implications for efficiency. We argue these issues would be best addressed by a concerted effort to massively uplift NCMEC's technical and analytical capabilities, which will require the cooperation of platforms, NCMEC, law enforcement and, importantly, the U.S. Congress. Report: https://lnkd.in/gKRqR7tU 

Upcoming Webinar: What Works and What Doesn't About the System for Reporting Child Sex Abuse Material Online April 22 at 9am PT The CyberTipline is the main line of defense for children who are exploited on the internet. It leads to the rescue of children and the arrest of abusers. Yet many believe that it does not always live up to its potential. In this webinar we will highlight insights from a nine-month study involving interviews with dozens of respondents across industry, law enforcement, and civil society, and share actionable recommendations to increase the CyberTipline’s effectiveness. These findings are part of a report on this topic, set to be released concurrently with the webinar. Register: https://lnkd.in/g66H7w-Q

⏳ Don’t miss the deadline to get in your Trust and Safety Research Conference session proposals by April 30! Proposals are open to academia, industry, civil society and government on a wide range of issue areas. Your contributions are invaluable in building community and shaping the field of online trust and safety. Our third annual Trust and Safety Research Conference will take place September 26-27 at Stanford University. General registration opens in June. https://lnkd.in/gHqNj7jt

We brought nearly 100 youth leaders and online safety, health and well-being experts together at Stanford University last week in collaboration with the Biden-Harris Administration. Some highlights: 🗣️ Youth voices are essential to understand their unique experiences and inform policy and platform design. They have important stories and recommendations, we just have to listen and involve them.  ⚠ There is a sense of urgency to take action, especially from young people and their parents or guardians. ⚖️ There is a strong demand for accountability from the tech industry and policymakers with calls for an industry baseline for youth safety measures. 📏 Nuance and choice are important in product design and public policy as no two social media platforms or young people are the same. 🤝 A holistic approach is needed to address youth well-being and mental health with family and community playing an important role. 🔬 More research is needed to support teens and test the effectiveness of online safety tools and design changes. 🔆 There is hope from shared commitment and collaboration across industries and areas of expertise. https://lnkd.in/eZrnr6Ms

Want to learn about free trust and safety teaching resources? Register for a webinar highlighting new material created by the Trust and Safety Teaching Consortium. The material is useful for university faculty and those running professional development trainings in industry. Hear from consortium members including Theodora Skeadas Ina Kamenova Marten Risius Kevin Fumai Justin Francese, PhD Radia Funna Join us: https://lnkd.in/g2Hug9GK

The Winter 2024 issue of the Journal of Online Trust and Safety is live!  https://lnkd.in/dDSQy7KC