Facebook closes more accounts for US elections



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Facebook said it closed more accounts to influence mid-term elections in the United States and explored a possible connection with Russia.

Facebook closed more accounts aimed at political interference

Facebook announced Tuesday that it had closed more accounts aimed at influencing the mid-term US election and exploring a possible connection with Russia.

"Over the course of investigations, we have detected and removed additional accounts on Facebook and Instagram," said Cyber ​​Security Policy Chief Nathaniel Gleicher. in an update published on the social network.

While highlighting the challenge of identifying the culprits, he notes that a website claiming to be badociated with Internet Research Agency (IRA), a troll farm based in Russia, has published a list of them. reported having created Instagram accounts.

Facebook had already closed most of these accounts and blocked others after an internal investigation, according to Gleicher.

"Ulti In reality, this effort may have been related to the IRA, but we are not in the best position to definitely say if this is the case," said Gleicher.

"The Trolls Are Encouraged to Say Their Activities Are Larger and More Influential"

On the eve of the mid-term elections, Facebook announced the blocking of 30 accounts on its platform and another 85 on Instagram, after the police told them that they could be linked to "foreign entities" trying to interfere 19659002] On Tuesday, the number of accounts deleted for "coordinated inauthentic behavior" was increased to 36 on Facebook and 99 on the Instagram service of the social network.

Most accounts were created after the middle of last year. According to Facebook, Instagram accounts totaled about 1.25 million. Subscribers, including 600,000 in the United States.

At the same time, Facebook pages have attracted a total of approximately 65,000 subscribers, with publications primarily in French

Most Instagram accounts would be in English [19659002] Facebook shared examples of shared content, stating that there were many articles about celebrities as well as social issues such as women's rights and gay pride. [19659002] Facebook blocked the initial accounts one day after being contacted by US law enforcement officials about online activities that may be related to foreign entities.

A study published at the end of October revealed that misinformation on social media was spreading faster with the approach of the 2016 presidential vote, that Russia is accused of manipulation by the through a vast propaganda campaign in favor of Donald Trump, the future winner. [19659002] The main online social platforms have been under intense pressure to avoid being used by "bad actors", publishing misinformation and raging voters.

Facebook opened a "War Room" a few weeks ago at its headquarters in Menlo Park, California. to be the nerve center of the fight against misinformation and the manipulation of the largest social network by foreign actors trying to influence elections in the United States and elsewhere.

The war room is part of the enhanced security strategy announced by Facebook. add about 20,000 employees.

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