Meta Shuts Down Nearly 9,000 Facebook and Instagram Accounts
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Meta has shut down nearly 9,000 Facebook and Instagram accounts, saying they were participating in a cross-platform Chinese covert influence operation.
Key Details: The "Spamouflage" operation spread across more than 50 online platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok, YouTube, and Reddit, according to Meta's Adversarial Threat Report.
Key Quote: “This campaign was run by geographically dispersed operators across China who appeared to be centrally provisioned with internet access and content,” Meta said in the report published Tuesday. “It included positive commentary about China and its province Xinjiang and criticisms of the United States, Western foreign policies, and critics of the Chinese government, including journalists and researchers.”
For Context: In 2019, Meta began investigating this influence operation, and its research aligned with several research groups, including the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI). The research revealed that the campaign was organized by Chinese law enforcement to advance China's interests while discrediting adversaries like the United States.
How the Media Covered it: Some right-rated sources noted that no evidence has been found that the China-based network received any substantial engagement from real people on its platform. Some left-rated sources noted that the operation "consistently struggled to reach beyond its own (fake) echo chamber."
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Left
Meta closes nearly 9,000 Facebook and Instagram accounts linked to Chinese ‘Spamouflage’ foreign influence campaign
Meta shut down close to 9,000 Facebook and Instagram accounts, groups and pages associated with a Chinese political spam network that had targeted users in Australia and other parts of the world, the company has revealed.
Meta began investigating in 2019 and its research aligned with several research groups who coined the term Spamouflage, including the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (Aspi).
In a report released by the social media giant on Tuesday, Meta said it had removed 7,704 Facebook accounts, 954 pages, 15 groups and 15 Instagram accounts identified as violating the company’s inauthentic behaviour...
From the Center
Meta pins pro-China influence campaign on Chinese law enforcement
Facebook parent company Meta (META.O) said on Tuesday it had uncovered links between people associated with Chinese law enforcement and a long-running but largely ineffectual operation to positively influence people on social media about China.
The social media giant removed around 7,700 Facebook accounts and hundreds of other pages, groups and Instagram accounts connected to the so-called "Spamouflage" campaign, elements of which have been active since 2018, it said in a quarterly security report.
The "Spamouflage" network has engaged in spurts of activity over the last several years pushing positive narratives about...
From the Right
Meta says it shuttered thousands of accounts involved in Chinese covert influence operation
Meta said it closed thousands of China-linked accounts on its platforms that were participating in the “largest known cross-platform covert influence operation in the world.”
The digital influence campaign spread across more than 50 online platforms, including Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, Google’s YouTube, X, TikTok and Reddit, according to Meta’s Adversarial Threat Report for 2023’s second quarter.
Meta said it linked the influence operation to “individuals associated with Chinese law enforcement.”
“This campaign was run by geographically dispersed operators across China who appeared to be centrally provisioned with internet access...
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