Facebook has 10 community standards that outline what is and isn’t allowed on Facebook. These standards are designed to encourage respectful behavior and help keep the Facebook community safe. Understanding these standards can help you ensure your activity on Facebook doesn’t violate any policies.
With over 2 billion monthly active users, Facebook aims to be an open and welcoming community for everyone. However, with such a large user base, it’s important to have guidelines in place to help protect users and keep interactions on the platform positive.
That’s why Facebook came up with its set of 10 community standards. These standards define what is and isn’t allowed on Facebook and apply to everyone using the platform, whether posting content, commenting on posts, advertising, or messaging.
Violating these community standards can lead to having your posts removed or your account temporarily blocked or permanently disabled. So it’s important all users understand and abide by these guidelines to help keep Facebook safe and promote respectful interactions.
1. Violence and Criminal Behavior
Facebook does not allow any threats, praise, or support of violence or criminal behavior. This includes threatening or promoting terrorism and organized crime.
Some specific things prohibited under this standard include:
- Statements of intent to commit high-severity violence
- Calls for high-severity violence including content where no target is specified but a symbol represents the target and/or includes a visual cue indicating the content is about violence
- Images depicting violent crimes committed against real people or animals with comments or captions by the poster that praise or celebrate the violence
- Sharing footage of high-severity violence in a way that glorifies the violence
Posts or accounts violating this standard will quickly be removed to prevent real-world harm. In severe cases, offending accounts may be disabled.
2. Safety
Facebook aims to prevent potential real-world harm that might be caused by content posted on the platform. Any content identified as putting people at risk will be removed.
Types of content prohibited under the safety standard include:
- Threats that could lead to death targeting people or places
- Targeted threats against public figures as long as a target and threat are identified
- Content depicting non-consensual sexual touching, groping or exposure
- Offers of sexual services such as prostitution
- Content that attempts to coordinate harm against people
- Self-harm content encouraging or depicting suicide or eating disorders
Facebook also doesn’t allow content that depicts cruel treatment of animals except in limited situations, such as hunting or food preparation, as per local laws.
3. Objectionable Content
Facebook aims to prevent potentially disturbing content such as graphic violence and sexually explicit content from spreading. Such content is considered objectionable and will be removed when detected.
Types of objectionable content not allowed includes:
- Images of wounded or dead people if shared in a insensitive manner
- Videos of dying or wounded animals with no redeeming value
- Sexual intercourse without clothes covering genitals or female nipples
- Digital content like drawings that depict sexual acts with children
While some content may have social, scientific, or educational value, it will still be removed if the risk of harm outweighs the value.
4. Adult Nudity and Sexual Activity
Facebook restricts sexually explicit content to adults over 18. Such content includes, but isn’t limited to:
- Visual depictions of sexual intercourse
- Images of uncovered genitalia
- Photoshopped nudity
- Some content related to escort services and erotic massage
While educational, documentary, scientific, or artistic content featuring nudity and sexual activity may be permitted, caution will be taken to limit visibility to minors. Explicit sexual solicitation is prohibited.
5. Sexual Exploitation of Adults
Facebook aims to prevent sexual exploitation on its platform. Any content that engages in sexual exploitation or endangers people will be removed.
Prohibited content includes:
- Claims about or depictions of non-consensual sexual touching and groping
- Offers of or requests for nude images/videos
- Human trafficking content
- Sex or human trafficking services such as escort services
Facebook may also disable accounts dedicated to facilitating or recruiting for human exploitation services.
6. Child Exploitation, Abuse and Nudity
Facebook takes a zero tolerance approach to any content facilitating, depicting or promoting child exploitation, abuse or nudity.
Prohibited content includes:
- Child sexual exploitation
- Solicitation of sexual material involving minors
- Minors in a sexual fetish context
- Minors with digitally-created nude images
Content that shows child nudity in limited situations such as art or news coverage must meet strict conditions to stay on the platform.
7. Human Exploitation
Content that facilitates human exploitation in any form has no place on Facebook. This includes:
- Human trafficking content
- Solicitation of domestic servitude
- Recruiting, transporting, transferring, harboring or receiving people through force, fraud or coercion
- Exploiting people for labor or prostitution through force, fraud, or coercion
In addition to removing violating content, Facebook may disable accounts dedicated to facilitating human exploitation.
8. Regulated Goods
Facebook restricts attempts by individuals to purchase, sell, trade, gift, request, offer, donate or transfer firearms, drugs, and other regulated goods between private individuals. Such activity is prohibited under this standard.
Regulated goods include:
- Illegal drugs and pharmaceuticals
- Firearms, ammunition, explosives
- Precursors or instructions to manufacture explosives or firearms
- 3D gun printing files or instructions
While discussion about or news coverage of regulated goods may be permitted, Facebook will take care to provide adequate context and prevent harm.
9. Fraud and Deception
To help reduce risks of economic loss or other harms, Facebook removes misleading or fraudulent content and disables violating accounts.
Prohibited activities include:
- Misuse of Facebook features for spam or phishing
- Misrepresentation of identity, purpose or origin
- Scams involving payment or donation requests
- Sale of fake goods or services
- Manipulation targeting trust and safety reporting or avoidance
Facebook also restricts content offering illegitimate employment opportunities such as pyramid schemes.
10. Hate Speech
Facebook does not allow hate speech on its platform because it creates an environment of intimidation and exclusion that goes against building community.
Prohibited hate speech includes:
- Dehumanizing speech such as comparing people to animals or diseases
- Slurs and epithets attacking people based on protected characteristics like religion or gender
- Violent threats against people or places without a target
- Exclusion stating certain groups do not belong or contribute to society
- Praise, celebration or mockery of hate crimes or hateful historical events
While people are permitted to speak critically of groups, hate speech crosses the line and will be removed quickly when detected.
Conclusion
Facebook’s community standards play a vital role in keeping interactions on the platform civil, respectful and safe. By outlining what is and isn’t permitted, these guidelines help protect Facebook’s diverse global community.
Understanding these policies can help you remain compliant when engaging on Facebook and assist in reporting problematic content that shouldn’t be there. If we all do our part to respect the standards, Facebook can continue empowering authentic interactions.