US News

Facebook, Instagram crack down on illegal gun sales

Social media sites will no longer be a black market for illegal guns.

Facebook and its recently acquired Instagram announced that they have agreed to crack down on people who use their sites to circumvent strict gun laws.

“This a hugely powerful step for any sort of conversation about gun sales on the internet,” said Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, whose office helped to broker the agreement.

“Responsible social media sites know that it is in no one’s interest for their sites to become a 21st century black market in dangerous and illegal goods that place our families and communities at risk,” he said.

Facebook said it will soon begin to root out and delete posts from users looking to buy or sell guns without background checks or transporting guns across state lines.

The company will also prevent people under the age of 18 from viewing gun-related posts, according to Monika Bickert, Facebook’s Head of Global Policy Management.

“Any time we receive a report on Facebook about a post promoting the private sale of a commonly regulated item, we will send a message to that person reminding him or her to comply with relevant laws and regulations,” she said.

A Facebook post that clearly states there is no background check involved in the gun sale.

A petition started by Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, an anti-gun advocacy group, calling on Facebook to prohibit illegal gun sales earned more than 230,000 signatures.

“We suffer from illegal guns being transported into our state,” said Shannon Watts, the groups founder. “It’s a well known fact… that crime guns in New York City, 90 percent of them… originate from out of state.”

“They are imported into NY where they wreak havoc with our citizens.”

John Feinblatt, Chairman of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, said his group was amazed when they realized the ease with which guns could be purchased on Facebook and transported across state lines.

“When we saw screenshot of guns for sale on Facebook and Instagram, we were certainly concerned,” he said. “But when we saw comments on the posting that said things like ‘no background checks,’ or ‘will sell across state lines,’ thats when our concern grew to high alert.”

Users who spot such posts can also do their part by flagging advertised guns to the company, who can then report the posts to law enforcement agencies if they pose a threat to public safety.

“We have a number of different channels through which people can communicate with us,” said Bickert, the Facebook representative.

“Any time somebody is using the site and sees something, they can report it to us,” she added.

The policies, set to be rolled out over the next few weeks, will not seek to ban gun advertisements across the board.

For instance, Facebook would allow a user in Texas to list an AR-15 for sale, since the gun is legal there, if it weren’t offered for sale in states where it’s illegal.

A similar post from someone in New York, for instance, which has more stringent gun laws and requires background checks, would be deleted.