Facebook has announced a partial lifting of its ban on the advertisement of face masks on its platform. The lift will again permit third-party sellers to advertise cloth masks and other non-medical face coverings.

The company had initially instituted a ban on ads for all types of face masks in March 2020. The ban covered ads on medical and respiratory masks because of shortages and concern for medical staff and other frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was also put in place to thwart scams, misleading marketing, and other forms of abuse. This is because Facebook could not vet every ad promoting face masks in its online marketplaces early in March 2020. Thus, the ads had taken over its site due to increased demand.

Facebook was not alone in instituting the bans as Amazon and Google also did the same to varying degrees. Merchants were found price gouging, making false health claims, and some failing to deliver purchased goods.

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It’s also worth mentioning that another reason Facebook is lifting the ban is because of the change of CDC guidance regarding face masks. In the new guidance, the CDC advises that people at least wear cloth masks outdoor or in small gatherings.

Now, the company is lifting the ban so as to help people find and purchase these masks.

“Many health authorities now advise wearing non-medical masks — and in some places, masks are required for activities like taking public transportation or visiting a store — and we’ve seen people and businesses of all sizes working to fill this need,” Facebook’s director of product management, Rob Leathern, wrote in the blog post.

Facebook will, however, still maintain some restrictions on the sales of the cloth masks. Companies or independent merchants must have at least a four-month history of advertising on Facebook to get the approval to advertise masks. It will also restrict sellers in countries “where [the company has] seen high percentages of policy-violating ads promoting medical supplies during the temporary ban”. It will only allow Merchants in affected countries to sell only non-medical masks within the country of their location.

Facebook will only permit the sale of cloth masks and other face coverings made out of fabrics and reusable material. The company’s ban on COVID-19 related wording or medical products still stands.

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