Ontario man frustrated Meta wouldn't pull video appearing to show drunk man fooling car ignition lock
Video had over 5 million views, nearly 20,000 likes when it hit Aaron Hagen's feed
Aaron Hagen of Bruce County, Ont., says he's frustrated a social media video of a man appearing to trick an alcohol ignition interlock, allowing him to drive drunk, wasn't taken down after Hagen contacted Meta with concerns it encouraged impaired driving.
Hagen said he first saw the video last week while scrolling Facebook, which presented it to him as a recommended reels video.
The video, which had more than five million views and nearly 20,000 likes, showed a man sitting behind the wheel of a vehicle, swigging from a bottle, using a leaf blower to trick the device and then starting the ignition.
"It's not like it's a small, you know, 'Five people saw it, nobody cares,' kind of thing. A lot of people have seen this,'" Hagen said. "Why is it being promoted? Why did it ever make it past one view?"
Ignition interlock devices (IID) require a driver to prove sobriety with a breath sample before starting a vehicle. In Ontario, they're mandatory in vehicles of people convicted of impaired driving or suspended for impaired driving offences three or more times within 10 years.
CBC News has seen the video, which was uploaded in January by an account that mostly reposts other people's content, but was not able to connect with the video's creator.
Hagen said that after reporting the video, Meta told him it didn't violate the platform's community standards, which determine what content is allowed.
"I was in a vehicle that was driven by a drunk driver when I was a kid and that was the scariest time of my life. I never want to be in a vehicle like that and I don't want anyone else to be," Hagen said.
CBC News reached out to Meta, Facebook's parent company, for comment, but did not receive a response before publication.
Meta's community standards say it prohibits the facilitation, organization, promotion, or admission of certain criminal or harmful activities by users, and prohibits "co-ordinating, threatening, supporting or admitting to vandalism, theft or malicious hacking," with exceptions.
It's not known how old the IID in the video is, but Eric Dumschat, legal director of MADD Canada, said one interlock manufacturer told him they spend a lot of effort on finding ways to prevent tampering.
Modern models can analyze breath patterns, air pressure and temperature to ensure it isn't being tampered with — something that can lead to additional penalties and charges.
Dumschat expressed disappointment about what the video portrayed.
"They don't just give these out for the hell of it; it's because this person has a problem with alcohol and with driving," Dumschat said. "The fact that you'd try and get around it, knowing that you only have this because you've got a problem — it's disappointing, but not surprising."
Tougher impaired penalties
Ontario has enacted tougher impaired driving rules, but MADD would like to see the province introduce an immediate roadside prohibition program, or IRP, like that in B.C. and Manitoba, he said.
Drivers with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08, and who haven't also committed another offence — like causing bodily harm or death, or being a repeat offender — would have their licences suspended, vehicles impounded and be enrolled in an anti-impaired driving program.
"Not only does it save lives, but it is significantly more efficient for the justice system," Dumschat said.
Rates of impaired driving have fallen over the decades, according to Statistics Canada data. In 2023, the national rate was 178 incidents per 100,000 people, compared to 290 in 1998, the earliest data available.
While rates are down, Dumschat said, progress has plateaued and more work is needed.
Hagen agreed not enough is being done to combat impaired driving. In his area of Bruce County, he said, he occasionally finds empty beer cans at the roadside, suggesting people continue to drink and drive.
In Ontario, penalties for impaired driving depend on the level of intoxication and other factors, like previous offences. A criminal conviction for impaired driving comes with steeper fines and jail time, longer interlock requirements and licence suspensions, and a medical evaluation.
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