Facebook considers loosening restrictions around cannabis

According to a new report from the Telegraph, Facebook is considering making changes to its strict rules that could potentially allow users to both sell and promote cannabis and related products.

 

 

The social media behemoth currently has a policy on “regulated goods” that prohibits any and all discussion on selling or purchasing the Schedule I drug, which is legal for recreational use in 10 states and Washington, DC but remains illegal at the federal level.

“Our policies at the moment do not allow for the sale of marijuana on the platform,” according to an internal presentation held at the network’s policy forum, reported the Telegraph. “We want to consider whether we can loosen this restriction, especially in relation to medical marijuana, legal marijuana and brick and mortar stores.”

Users are currently forbidden from informing other users that cannabis products are for sale, listing prices for cannabis products or indicating an interest in purchasing cannabis products.

The changes would apply exclusively to user posts, but not to Facebook Marketplace or paid advertising, where the current rules will remain in place for the time being. The company is also seeking ways to prevent underage users from accessing drug-related content pertaining to buying and selling.

Facebook users are currently permitted to advertise, purchase and sell non-intoxicating cannabis products such as CBD oil, but are banned from selling any product containing THC.

“Since marijuana faces different legal and social restrictions across the globe, this may be operationally challenging for us,” a Facebook employee noted during the presentation. “[We] may encounter regional pushback in those areas of the world where the law or [society] views marijuana negatively.”

Currently, the social network scans for images, mentions, prices, and other potentially drug-related content through the use of artificial intelligence.

The company has reportedly created an “internal working group” to examine if and how the rules could realistically be relaxed or altered, considering the diversity of cannabis laws around the globe.

 

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