Tensions are high following the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v Wade and end the right to a legal abortion in the United States.

Following this decision, calls have been made to big tech firms to protect the data of women and speak out. Firms such as Google have reiterated policies that allow employees to relocate without question. Duolingo has also reportedly said that it may limit expansion in places that outlaw abortion according to an Axios report.

It’s unfortunate – to put it kindly – then that Instagram is in hot water after AP found that posts about abortion (not showing an abortion mind you) were hidden on the platform.

The news agency reports that several Instagram accounts run by abortion rights advocacy groups found their posts and stories obfuscated with Instagram’s sensitive content warning. This warning is usually placed over graphic content but the posts in question were reportedly simply calling for donations to abortion organisations.

The AP identified more than a dozen posts which contained the word “abortion” that were hidden by Instagram.

The firm has come out and said that the reason for this was a bug.

“We’re hearing that people around the world are seeing our ‘sensitivity screens’ on many different types of content when they shouldn’t be. We’re looking into this bug and working on a fix now,” Instagram tweeted on Tuesday.

Instagram isn’t the only Meta property to have stoked ire following the Supreme Court’s decision. Facebook removed posts from Vice which stated that abortion pills could be emailed. While this practice could soon be outlawed in certain states such as Arizona and Tennessee and is outlawed in Texas, it is legal in states where abortion is legal.

Facebook spokesperson Andy Stone tweeted stating that some posts were removed incorrectly.

While we understand that the situation in the US is complex given the way states are split between being Red or Blue, Meta really could have and should have done better here.