Instagram Is Banning Plastic Surgery Face Filters

As Instagram rises to the Snapchat challenge and firmly puts embeds its flag into the territory, the options to present as something entirely other (be it a floating head in a toilet or a post-surgery Insta thot) are basically limitless. And theses cosmetic surgery effects are apparently a huge cause for concern.

The company behind Instagram’s AR filters, Spark AR, has announced in a Facebook post that they’ll officially ban filters that resemble plastic surgery body modifications for ethical reasons.

“We want Spark AR effects to be a positive experience and are re-evaluating our existing policies as they relate to well-being,” the company said. Starting now, they’re removing all effects that are associated with plastic surgery, and postpone the approval of any new ones. They hope to maintain a “healthy AR ecosystem for creators and our entire community.”

If you haven’t given much thought about the effects of looking augmented faces on social media, there’s some recommended reading over at Huffington Post, where they gathered a whole bunch of data on FaceTuning and mental health, and Paper, where they talked to the creator of @s0cialmediavsreality about actual human faces.