TWITTER SHUTS DOWN THOUSANDS OF FAKE ACCOUNTS
Twitter said on Friday it has closed down thousands of accounts across the world for spreading fake news as well as pro-government propaganda, including in places like the United Arab Emirates, China, and Spain.
Accounts coming from China seeking to sow discord among protesters in Hong Kong were closed down, as were accounts amplifying a pro-Saudi message coming from Egypt and the United Arab Emirates directed at Qatar and Yemen, Twitter said.
Fake news accounts were also suspended in Spain and Ecuador.
The information release is part of the company’s push to improve understanding of how its platform is used by state actors to manipulate public opinion.
Twitter said they had identified 4,302 accounts based in China “attempting to sow discord about the protest movement in Hong Kong.”
This follows the identification in August of more than 200,000 fake accounts in China engaged in fueling public discord in Hong Kong.
The announcement follows Facebook’s removing fake accounts based in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE last month for posting misinformation about regional hotspots including Libya, Sudan and Yemen.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
AFP
More Stories
ISRAEL ATTACKS HEZBOLLAH WITH AIRSTRIKES AFTER IRAN ATTACK
On Sunday, the Israeli military carried out a series of airstrikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. This came hours after...
OUR RESPONSE WILL BE MUCH LARGER – IRAN WARNS ISRAEL AGAINST FIGHTING BACK
Iran has warned that it would respond in a much larger and severe way if Israel retaliates its Saturday’s drone...
WORLD REACTIONS TO IRAN STRIKES ON ISRAEL
Countries around the world condemned Iran’s strikes on Israel late Saturday, warning the attack threatened to further destabilise the Middle...
WAR: FRANCE HELPED ISRAEL AGAINST IRAN ATTACK, SAYS ISRAELI ARMY SPOKESPERSON
Daniel Hagari, the chief military spokesperson of Israel, has revealed that France was among nations involved in defending Israel against...
IRAN ARMY SAYS ATTACK ON ISRAEL ‘ACHIEVED ALL ITS OBJECTIVES’
The Iranian army said Sunday its drone and missile attack on Israel, in retaliation for a deadly strike on Iran’s...
WAR: ISRAELI MINISTER SPEAKS ON ATTACK, BRANDS IRAN ‘A COUNTRY OF TERROR’
After last night's attacks, Israeli Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant referred to Iran as a nation of terror. The fact that...