CEP Executive Director David Ibsen writes: "It’s 15 years since Facebook was born and – like all adolescents – it’s getting into trouble. However, Facebook’s kind of trouble is a little more serious than most teenagers. We at the Counter Extremism Project are particularly concerned about the spread of illegal content on the platform. The use of Facebook by online extremists is dangerous and ever-present. The platform, with all of its resources and influence, is in a position of real power but has not put the requisite thought into its responsibility. Instead, the company chooses to do the bare minimum in order to negate public criticism. Artificial intelligence should be deployed in tandem with human intervention. Technology needs to be constantly reassessed and refined as terrorists find ways around it. Facebook needs to work in tandem with outside actors and regulators to ensure the real threat can be assessed and corrective measures put in place. It is crucial that Facebook and other platforms are required to do more to address extremist content on their platforms, and a one-hour time limit between upload and removal is particularly important. What needs to be avoided is a situation where Facebook is finally taking the necessary action on terrorist content only after a major attack that costs multiple lives. At more than 2 billion users and more than half a trillion dollars in market capitalisation, it should be is safe to say by now that Facebook has reached adulthood. Well, with maturity comes responsibility. 15 years into the world and it is time for Facebook to finally grow up."