Meta Follows YouTube’s Lead with New Restrictions on ‘Unoriginal’ Content on Facebook

On Monday, Meta announced it will introduce more stringent measures against accounts that distribute “unoriginal” content on Facebook, focusing on those that often recycle text, images, or videos from other users. This year alone, Meta has dismantled around 10 million accounts impersonating well-known content creators.

Moreover, the company has taken action against 500,000 accounts engaging in “spam-like behavior or fake interaction.” Measures include demoting comments from these accounts and restricting the visibility of their content to prevent them from monetizing it.

This announcement follows shortly after YouTube clarified its policies concerning unoriginal content, which pertains to mass-produced and repetitive videos—formats that have grown easier to generate via AI technologies.

Like YouTube, Meta has stated that users who interact with others’ content—such as making reaction videos, joining trends, or offering their insights—will not incur penalties. The primary target is accounts that merely repost content from original creators, especially those that run spam accounts or impersonate authentic creators.

According to the company, accounts that abuse the system by repeatedly recycling others’ material will temporarily lose access to Facebook’s monetization programs and face decreased post distribution. When duplicate videos are detected, their reach will be minimized to ensure that the original creator receives adequate views and recognition.

Additionally, Meta is piloting a feature that will embed links on duplicate videos, directing viewers to the original content.

This update arrives as Meta encounters backlash from users across multiple platforms, including Instagram, over its flawed execution of policies through automated systems. A petition with almost 30,000 signatures calls for Meta to rectify issues regarding wrongfully disabled accounts and its insufficient human support, which has left users feeling neglected and has negatively impacted numerous small businesses. Despite increased media scrutiny and attention from notable creators, Meta has not responded to these issues.

While Meta’s recent crackdown aims at accounts that exploit others’ content for profit, the challenge of unoriginal content continues to grow.

With the ongoing advancement of AI technology, platforms are flooded with low-quality media generated by AI, often dubbed “AI slop.” For example, on YouTube, it’s not uncommon to encounter videos featuring AI-generated voices narrating over images or video snippets, all created using text-to-video AI tools.

Meta’s update seems to target reused content, reflecting an increasing awareness of the AI slop issue. In a section that offers “tips” for crafting original content, Meta advises creators against merely “stitching together clips” or adding their watermarks to others’ material. Instead, it promotes authentic storytelling and discourages short videos that provide little value.

Although not directly stated, the kinds of unoriginal videos being produced are becoming easier to make with AI, as low-quality videos typically consist of a sequence of images or clips (either real or AI-generated) overlaid with AI narration.

In the announcement, Meta reiterated its long-standing policy preventing creators from reusing content from various apps or sources. The company also highlighted that video captions should maintain high quality, signaling a potential decline in the use of automated AI captions that lack creator oversight.

Meta asserts that these changes will be gradually rolled out over the coming months, allowing creators to adapt. If creators observe that their content isn’t reaching audiences, they can explore new post-level insights in Facebook’s Professional Dashboard for further information.

Creators will also have the capability to track potential risks regarding content recommendations or monetization via the Support home screen found in their Page or professional profile’s main menu.