Since 2011 SIN has run a Facebook fan page, which it used to warn against the dangers of substance abuse. Suddenly, in 2018 Facebook moderators (or its algorithms) raised objections to SIN’s activity: first one of the SIN-moderated groups and then the entire fan page, followed by 16,000 users, were found “in violation of Community Standards” and removed. SIN has attempted to use the mechanism provided by Facebook to challenge these removals, but to no avail. Members of SIN still do not know which particular content was deemed by Facebook as a violation of its Community Standards and for what reason.

SIN’s target audience are young people who are particularly at risk of experimenting with drugs and who are active in social media. Facebook was the key communication channel of the organisation, which SIN used to promote its activities and mission, to contact its volunteers, and to raise funds. Through Facebook, people using drugs could seek SIN’s help, while Instagram allowed SIN to reach younger users.