trips or whatever else strikes their fancy. Joining
a group typically requires the approval of a
group administrator or an existing member.
Many such groups are public, meaning anyone
can search them out, see a list of their members
and browse people’s posts without joining —
even if they’re not on Facebook. Other groups
are “closed.” These boards show up in search,
although only members can see posts and the
names of other members.
“Secret” groups, by contrast, aren’t visible at all
to outsiders; not even their names turn up in
searches. Joining one requires being invited by a
current member.
Plenty of secret groups aren’t remotely
nefarious. For example, people discussing health
matters or posting photos of their children to
family members and friends often make such
groups secret.
Facebook says about 400 million of its users
are in what it considers “meaningful” groups,
which it defines in a variety of ways, including
how much time a person spends in them. The
company doesn’t disclose how many of these
groups are public, closed or secret.
ARE THE RULES DIFFERENT IN SECRET
GROUPS?
Facebook says all groups, including secret ones,
are subject to same community standards it
applies to individual posts. Among other things,
those rules forbid bullying and harassment, hate
speech, glorification of violence and “cruel and
insensitive” posts that target “victims of serious
physical or emotional harm.”
Of course, it might be easier to get away with
rule-breaking posts in secret groups, although
only to the same extent that someone might get