Earlier this summer, Instagram began letting high-profile users of the platform filter specific words from the comments sections of their posts, and now the company has decided to allow anyone use the keyword moderation tool, as noted by Kevin Systrom CEO & Co-founder, Instagram.

The beauty of the Instagram community is the diversity of its members. All different types of people — from diverse backgrounds, races, genders, sexual orientations, abilities and more — call Instagram home, but sometimes the comments on their posts can be unkind. To empower each individual, we need to promote a culture where everyone feels safe to be themselves without criticism or harassment. It's not only my personal wish to do this, I believe it's also our responsibility as a company. So, today, we're taking the next step to ensure Instagram remains a positive place to express yourself.

The first feature we're introducing is a keyword moderation tool that anyone can use. Now, when you tap the gear icon on your profile, you'll find a new Comments tool. This feature lets you list words you consider offensive or inappropriate. Comments with these words will be hidden from your posts. You can choose your own list of words or use default words we've provided. This is in addition to the tools we've already developed such as swiping to delete comments, reporting inappropriate comments and blocking accounts.

We know tools aren't the only solution for this complex problem, but together, we can work towards keeping Instagram a safe place for self-expression. My commitment to you is that we will keep building features that safeguard the community and maintain what makes Instagram a positive and creative place for everyone.

Anyone who spends any amount of time on Instagram will certainly see this as a welcome change to the platform, and I'm certainly glad they decided to roll it out to everyone instead of just offering it to high-profile accounts. If you're looking to make use of the moderation tool, you can access it tapping on the gear icon with Instagram and scrolling down to settings. From there, you will see a new 'Comments' section. Just tap on that.

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