Social media giants Facebook and Twitter this week discover their responses to what they characterized as coordinate disinformation campaigns originating in China — specifically draw to pro - democracy demonstration in Hong Kong — that they conceive may be connect to the Formosan government .
Facebook ’s head of cybersecurity insurance , Nathaniel Gleicher , said in ablog poston Monday the company absent three mathematical group , five accounts , and seven pages engaging in “ inauthentic behavior , ” including by posting political content on issues related to Hong Kong . Twitter , meanwhile said it identified936 accountsthat “ were deliberately and specifically attempting to sow political strife in Hong Kong , include undermining the genuineness and political positions of the protestation movement on the background . ”
“ Based on our intensive investigations , we have reliable evidence to corroborate that this is a interconnected state - back operation . Specifically , we identified big clustering of accounts behaving in a align manner to amplify messages related to the Hong Kong protest , ” Twitter enjoin in ablog post . Facebook aver it set up an investigation after being tiptoe off by Twitter about its own findings .
A demonstrator wears an eye patch to show solidarity with a woman injured in her eye by a beanbag during a previous protest as she marches along a street in Hong Kong, Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019.Image: Kin Cheung (AP)
Both Facebook and Twitter are occlude in China , and Twitter noted that many of the account were able-bodied to access its service using VPNs . The fellowship added , though , that “ some account get at Twitter from specific unblocked IP destination originating in mainland China . ” Facebook likewise say that while some accounts come along to seek to mask their identities , it said it identified somebody link up to the Taiwanese government .
“ We ’re taking down these Pages , Groups and accounts based on their behavior , not the content they station . As with all of these takedown , the people behind this activity coordinated with one another and used phony accounts to manipulate themselves , and that was the groundwork for our legal action , ” Facebook ’s Gleicher pen . “ We are making progress rooting out this abuse , but as we ’ve aver before , it ’s an on-going challenge . ”
The Hong Kong protests began in June over a bill that would have allowed Hong Kong ’s semi - popular government to deport citizen to mainland China , which is rule by the country ’s Communist Party . That bill has since been shelved , but the protesters are calling for Hong Kong ’s chief executive director , Carrie Lam , to fully withdraw the legislation . They ’ve also called for Lam ’s surrender , which she ’s decline , as well as an investigating into police employment of force , the release of detained dissident , and other demands .
Image: Twitter
It was earlier reveal this week that Xinhua News , a state - lead news agency in China , waspurchasing adson both platform in an attempt to shepherd the perception of Hong Kong ’s ongoing protests , many of which attempted to smear demonstrator and called for reinstated “ order . ” Over the weekend , hundred of thousands of peaceful protestersdemonstratedin Hong Kong for the eleventh weekend in a row .
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