Facebook Add Content Protection to Guard Creator Reels

Meta is introducing a new system aimed at helping Facebook creators maintain greater control over their short-form videos. The company has launched Content Protection, a tool that automatically scans Facebook and Instagram for reposts of a creator’s original Reels and notifies them when close matches appear.

Once a creator enrolls, every Reel they publish on Facebook becomes eligible for protection. The system draws on the same underlying technology as Meta’s long-running Rights Manager tool, comparing uploads for both full and partial matches. If the system flags a reused clip, the creator receives an alert through the Professional Dashboard.

Creators can also retroactively protect older uploads by selecting them manually, extending coverage beyond new posts.

When a match is found, creators can choose from several actions. They can track the reused clip, leaving it public while monitoring its reach and optionally adding attribution that links back to the original profile. They can block the repost, making it disappear from Facebook and Instagram feeds without penalizing the account that shared it. Or they can release the claim, allowing the repost to remain visible and removing it from the creator’s match list.

Meta notes that not all content can be claimed, including reaction videos and compilations, and warns that “Misusing content protection by repeatedly trying to claim and take action on reels you don’t own can result in restrictions or losing access.” The company is attempting to balance creator rights with the reality of remix culture, where transformative use is common.

The launch comes as Meta continues efforts to curb repost-heavy pages and aggregator accounts across its platforms. Instagram previously reduced the visibility of accounts that primarily re-share trending clips, part of a broader push to prioritize original content in rankings and recommendations.