The parent company of Instagram & Facebook, Meta, will abandon its ban on exposed nipples.

Meta's Oversight Board stated on January 17th, 'the [old] policy is based on a binary view of gender and a distinction between male and female bodies,' which makes rules about baring nipples 'unclear' for those who do not identify as women.

The board is funded by Meta, but operates independently and is composed of a group of academics, politicians and journalists. The board advises the company on content moderation and policies.

They advised the change would ensure their guidelines are "governed by clear criteria that respect international human rights standards".

Many activists have protested the fact that women's nipples are sexualised when men's are not - arguing that it is an unfair double standard.

The Guardian reports that "Lactivists" spent the 2000s campaigning to change the way women's breasts are seen as inherently sexual - spearheading the well-known campaign #FreetheNipple, which went mainstream in 2013.

Meta states it "welcomes the board's decision in this case", a representative said in a statement.

"We are constantly evolving our policies to help make our platforms safer for everyone," the spokesperson added. "We know more can be done to support the LGBTQ+ community, and that means working with experts and LGBTQ+ advocacy organisations on a range of issues and product improvements."

Meta has 60 days to respond publicly to the board's recommendations.