Take it Down: Ensuring user security in online platforms

Gilina Voon

Opinions Editor

While scrolling through TikTok, I came across an intriguing video: a game developer adding a capybara riding an alligator to a dynamic digital street environment. The clip included snippets of the game, Capybara Rush, and the peaceful capybaras instantly piqued my interest.

With a 4.8 star rating on the App Store, Capybara Rush features adventurous capybaras known for their calm spirit and their nonchalant facial expressions. When I first downloaded the game, only the classic level mode was available—in which players run forward as a capybara, collecting other capybaras and tangerines while avoiding traffic obstacles. Collision results in the loss of capybaras, and if enough capybaras are lost, players are demoted to a lower level. The game has simple controls: tapping the screen to jump, swiping left or right to change lanes and holding down to slide under obstacles. This makes the game effortless for anyone of any age to pick up.

I enjoyed the features of the classic mode, but I was pleasantly surprised when the app began releasing new modes. The capybaras can now drive, swim, stack and fly, each mode presents its own unique challenges. I personally like swim mode the most because swimming capybaras have an untouchable aesthetic. Aside from tangerines, capybaras are now able to acquire watermelons and bananas which are exchanged for capybara skins, adding a fun and personal touch to the game. My all time favorite is the Shrek skin, which gives the capybara a green and gray coloring with Shrek ears.

The game’s design is charming and fascinating, featuring adorable brown capybaras with placid smiles—set against colorful and whimsical environments— such as a jungle and the deep sea. The background music is upbeat and lively, enhancing the engaging atmopshere.

After I discovered Capybara Rush, I shared it my friends. Everyone I know who has played it loves it; there is something about capybaras that makes people happy. From its-evolving gameplay to its playful design, Capybara Rush is a marvelous and captivating game that is definitely worth downloading.

Many teenagers and young adults have sent intimate photos to their romantic partners and had those photos shared or spread online without their consent. For many people, having explicit images of themselves posted on the internet can be a traumatic experience. To help teens regain control of their digital footprint, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) created Take It Down, a free platform that enables teens to remove explicit images and videos of themselves from the internet. Meta Platforms provided the initial funding for the website, facilitating its launch in December 2022.

Adults who appeared in explicit digital fingerprint, or hash value, to specific pictures and videos, blocking these images from appearing in other online platform. Companies utilize these hash values to detect, locate and then remove the target media. AP News says that many people prefer using the website because it is anonymous, while reporting to law enforcement is not. with UK Revenge Porn Helpline to detect explicit photos and support victims. Within the first year, StopNCII helped 12,000 adults create cases to stop images and videos, per The Wall Street Journal. required to send in the original image, causing the tool to quickly dwindle.

However, the site has certain limitations—only participating platforms, which currently include Facebook, Instagram, OnlyFans, Pornhub and Yubo, can take down images. Other social media platforms like Twitter and Tiktok have not committed to the project. If certain images are uploaded onto another site or sent in an encrypted platform, the photos cannot be taken down. Additionally, if the original image is altered—such as being cropped or overlaid with emojis—then it needs a new hash. Similar images, like those with Instagram filters, also need new hashes—even if the hash only differs by one letter or number.

Take It Down allows users to anonymously remove pictures without having to upload the original file. In addition, it assigns a unique

“With time, the website will likely be utilized on all media platforms and picture heavy-websites. With the continual rise in the use of social media, Take It Down will be necessary to ensure user security,” Sophomore Jonathan Li said.

In 2021, Meta launched a tool called Stop Nonconsensual Intimate Images (StopNCII) in collaboration

Nevertheless, media platforms have been consistently failing to protect minors from media exploitation. In 2015, Snapchat set an age limit and Youtube added YouTube Kids in hopes to combat user insecurity. Despite these precautions, children have found ways to circumvent the rules.

Thus, Meta funded Take It Down and added new privacy features, such as applying stricter privacy settings for Facebook users under 16. It also encourages teens to report suspicious adult accounts after blocking them.

Meta anticipates that Take it Down will help combat online child exploitation making social media platforms more secure. They hope that other online platforms will be willing to participate in the project.