In PlatoOne of the most important Ancient Greek philosophers. 's Allegory of the Cave, he describes a group of prisoners chained to the wall of a cave, facing a blank surface. All they can see on the surface is shadows moving behind them, but because they can see nothing else, they come to see the shadows as "reality".

Many compare the message of this allegory to social media. Some think it has created a kind of 'false reality'. Young people live their lives on their Instagram, Facebook and Twitter feeds. According to many, these sites force people to fake and glamourise their lives for other people's approval. 

Cue BeReal, the new "anti-Instagram" app which focuses on showing the boring moments of the everyday. Its 15 million daily users receive a notification every 24 hours inviting them to record what they are doing at the moment of the alert with a selfie and a picture of their surroundings. 

On BeReal, you cannot easily curate your life, use photoshop or FacetuneA photo-editing app. The notification could come at any time. You could be tanning yourself luxuriously on the beach, but you could also be in the middle of a twelve-hour Netflix binge with a range of empty crisp wrappers in frame.

For people who see social media's lack of authenticityGenuineness. as a problem, BeReal is a refreshing addition to social media sites. However, not everyone agrees that faking is a problem, and some philosophers agree.

Philosophers such as NietzscheA 19th-Century German philosopher. believed that we should wear a "mask" to conceal our true selves from others, whilst others see reality as a simulationA model representing a situation. created by our brains to make meaning out of our lives.

Social media undeniably has negative sides, but they go further than just problems with fakery. The question remains as to whether a social media site designed to strip back inauthenticity can change anything.

Yes: Our reliance on portraying our lives as perfect on social media has had negative effects on our psychology. BeReal offers a way for us to show the people around us that our lives are not perfect, which will improve our wellbeing and relationship with the internet.

No: Our focus on authenticity is senseless. Surely, internet users should be able to tell for themselves that what they see on Instagram is a fake representation of reality. Why should we have to break it down for them?

Or... BeReal looks like a good alternative to the most harmful social media sites like Instagram and Snapchat. But in the end, all social media apps will do their best to make money from users and their data.

Plato - One of the most important Ancient Greek philosophers. 

Facetune - A photo-editing app

Authenticity - Genuineness.

Nietzsche - A 19th-Century German philosopher.

Simulation - A model representing a situation.