U.S. Pact with Social Media Firms Aims to End Use of Online Platforms to Distribute Illicit Substances

The United States has signed a memorandum with three of the world’s largest social media companies that aims to prevent use of the online platforms to distribute illicit substances, the Associated Press reports.

The Alliance to Prevent Drug Harms is a joint effort of the U.S. Mission to the United Nations and Meta, X and Snap Inc. The Alliance “will work to disrupt the availability of synthetic drugs online, promote drug-prevention content across platforms, and enables cross-sector communication establishing the best evidence-based practices for drug-prevention campaigns,” according to a news release from the United States Mission to the United Nations.

“Two out of every five Americans know someone who has died of an opioid overdose…in every corner of the world…we’re seeing a rapid rise in synthetic drug use, dependence, and overdose death,” said Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Representative of the United States to the United Nations. “This is an international crisis…we’ve seen the criminal groups that produce these drugs adapt quickly.”

The Alliance is a result of talks that began at the UN General Assembly’s annual gathering of world leaders in September 2023.