Meta Says Removed Over 130 Iranian Accounts For Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 21st January, 2022) Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta removed more than 130 accounts from the two platforms during the months of December for suspected coordinated inauthentic behavior, Meta said on Thursday in a review of their 2021 enforcement actions.

"We removed eight Facebook accounts and 126 Instagram accounts from Iran that primarily targeted audiences in the UK, with a focus on Scotland. We found this activity as a result of our internal investigation into suspected coordinated inauthentic behavior in the region," Meta said.

The investigation into the accounts found links to individuals in Iran, including some with a background in teaching English as a foreign language, Meta added.

The company said it also removed in December accounts from Mexico that targeted audiences in other Latin American countries as well as accounts from Turkey that mainly targeted people in Libya.

Meta explained that coordinated inauthentic behavior is a systemic effort to manipulate public debate for a strategic goal where fake accounts are central to the operation.

The company said it works to stop such activity in the context of domestic, non-government campaigns and when it occurs on behalf of foreign government actors.