Instagram is asking some of its users about their race and ethnicity. Read to know why the firm is collecting this information.
Why is Instagram collecting data on race and ethnicity?
To better understand how people from various groups experience their app, Instagram is asking some of its users about their ethnicity and race. According to the meta-owned firm, they will be assessing how their products are impacting various communities if they lack this information. “To better understand different experiences people may have on Instagram, we need to collect and measure demographic information. Like race and ethnicity,” it stated in a blog post. “We will ask a random assortment of people on Instagram in the US to participate in an optional survey where they can share this information,” it added.
Is this secure?
Over the next few months, Instagram users in the US may see a prompt asking them about their ethnicity or race. Moreover, the prompt on the app will lead to a detailed survey hosted by YouGov. YouGov is an international research group that aids companies run secure surveys. The individual responses are encrypted and also split into parts. They will be stored across different partner research firms. Instagram revealed, assuring users that it cannot connect people or their accounts to the responses. “This information will also allow us to better understand the experiences different communities have on Instagram, how our technology may impact different groups, and if there are changes we can make to promote fairness,” it stated.
Additionally, it added that participating in the survey is not mandatory. “The method used by Meta to analyze how people of different races and ethnicities interact with Instagram is very secure. The responses are encrypted and split apart, with distributed algorithmic computations and data storage at different institutions. So no one can link survey responses to Instagram accounts,” stated Dr. Zhishan Guo. Dr. Guo is an assistant professor at the University of Central Florida’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.