Trust and Safety work: internal governance of technology risks and harms

Trust and Safety work mitigates certain social risks and harms of digital technologies. In a landscape that is only slowly establishing regulatory oversight mechanisms, Trust and Safety work performs a type of internal governance by attempting to mitigate disinformation, online harassment, extremism, and other harms accelerated or amplified by technology products and services. With origins in content moderation, Trust and Safety work now also includes product advice for online services and IRL (in real life) products. Attention to Trust and Safety work can complicate a monolithic view of what tech work is and who does it, as well as point to locations for intervention as we seek to promote Public Interest Technology in globally impactful sociotechnical systems.