New Delhi: In a major crackdown on the use of fake accounts to criticise opponents, Facebook Inc on Monday removed 687 pages and accounts linked to the Congress and a smaller number of what appeared to be pro-BJP accounts, saying they were indulging in “coordinated inauthentic behaviour” on the social media platform.
These accounts, it said, were part of coordinated networks and were removed not based on content or fake news but for “inauthentic behaviour” and for pushing spam.
Besides, Facebook has also removed 103 pages, groups and accounts on its platform and Instagram for engaging in similar behaviour as part of a network that originated in Pakistan.
Facebook head of cybersecurity policy Nathaniel Gleicher told reporters that Facebook has removed 687 Facebook Pages and accounts — the majority of which had already been detected and suspended by its automated systems — that engaged in “coordinated inauthentic behaviour” in India and were linked to individuals associated with an IT Cell of the Congress.
“When we remove one of these networks, the reason we remove them is because of their coordinated inauthentic behaviour, that they are using network of fake accounts to conceal their identity to mislead who’s behind them. That’s the basic reason for removal,” he told reporters. He asserted that the removal was not based on the content that was shared by these pages and groups. “We are working to detect and stop coordinated inauthentic behaviour because we don’t want our services to be used to manipulate people. We’re taking down these pages and accounts based on their behaviour, not the content they posted,” he said. No immediate comments could be obtained from the Congress.
Facebook, which has been facing flak globally for instances of user data breach, has been ramping up efforts to ensure that its platforms (that includes WhatsApp and Instagram) aren’t misused to spread misinformation, especially ahead of polls in India.
It has recently started providing details of political ads on its platform in a bid to enhance transparency. It is also strengthening its team of fact checkers and deploying technology tools to flag fake news.
Separately, Facebook has also removed 15 pages, groups and accounts for engaging in “coordinated inauthentic behaviour” on Facebook and Instagram that were linked to individuals associated with an Indian IT firm, Silver Touch.
