FromĀ The Daily Dot: Last week, Facebook announced a global rollout of their new suicide prevention algorithm, which aims to identify users deemed at risk of suicide and refer them to resources. Many people in the mental health and disability communities are concerned about the potentially coercive implications of the new tool.
“Some have expressed fear that FacebookĀ Community Operations team members could request thatĀ police check up on them over a postās content. Claire Kooyman, a 34-year-old Boulder, Colorado resident, told the Daily Dot that sheās previously used her Facebook page as a way to reach out to friends when sheās struggling with her depression and anxiety. Sheās found it to be a way to get positive reinforcement from others who experience the same symptoms, but worries about what sheāll share next, and if itāll get flagged by Facebookās new system.
Kooyman also expressed concern for flagged users who are then picked up on a mental health holdāan involuntary detention of someone who hasnāt committed a crimeĀ but is considered a danger to themselves or others. In some states, if psychiatric facilities are unavailable, then patients can be held in jail.”