Twitter, Facebook move on Chinese accounts ‘part of much larger conversation on disinformation’

Social media giants have been under pressure to stop proliferation of fake news and misinformation since US claims of Russian interference in 2016 poll

The two platforms last year stepped up purges of suspicious accounts they claim are part of coordinated efforts by state-backed actors

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Twitter and Facebook suspended accounts they alleged were part of a state-backed disinformation campaign. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 12:00am, 21 Aug 2019Updated: 5:25am, 21 Aug 2019

Twitter and Facebook’s suspension of accounts they said were spreading misinformation about the anti-government protests in Hong Kong is the latest move in their global crackdown on state-backed disinformation campaigns.

On Monday, Twitter said 936 banned accounts originating from China were “deliberately and specifically attempting to sow political discord in Hong Kong” as part of a “coordinated state-backed operation”, and violated the company’s “platform manipulation policies” that forbid spam, coordinated activity and fake accounts.

Facebook released a statement the same day banning a small number of accounts, pages and groups involved in “coordinated inauthentic behaviour” that it said were linked to “individuals associated with the Chinese government” based on an internal investigation.

Following US allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, social media giants such as Facebook and Twitter have been under pressure to stop the proliferation of fake news and misinformation on their platforms.

Facebook has cited “coordinated inauthentic behaviour” to shut down accounts and pages from countries including Russia, Iran, Pakistan, India and the Philippines. Photo: AP

Starting last year, Facebook and Twitter have stepped up their purges of fake and suspicious accounts they claim are part of coordinated efforts by state-backed actors.