Instagram has announced its new feature of detecting bullying within its photos and captions, which started on Tuesday, October 9.

While Instagram already gives its users the option to disable the comment section of his or her post and block any offensive comments, this machine learning technology is programmed to detect any other harassment left unreported.

“I had no idea that Instagram did this,” said Sophomore Julia Galesi. “But as a user of Instagram, I really like that they are making an effort to reduce cyberbullying because there is still a lot of it.”

Though Instagram has not directly stated what this technology specifically blocks, they have mentioned that it is able to detect if someone is being compared to someone else in a negative light.

Sophomore Grace Conturso stated, “I think the technology is beneficial because social media has a lot of cons involving bullying and this will help stop it.”

While many see Instagram’s efforts to eliminate cyberbullying as noble and extremely important in today’s society, it is almost impossible to remove all harassment on social media.

Mannut Singh, a sophomore at WHHS, commented: “Though I do not have an Instagram account, I believe that Instagram’s efforts to protect against bullying are steps in the right direction.”