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Facebook removes ‘fake’ accounts linked to Pakistani military
ISLAMABAD, April 1, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Facebook is removing 103 pages,
groups and accounts linked to the media wing of Pakistan’s military, the
social media giant announced Monday, calling them “fake” accounts created to
manipulate people.
The statement by Facebook’s head of cybersecurity policy, Nathaniel
Gleicher, shines a rare light on efforts by Pakistan’s shadowy military
establishment to use social media as a propaganda tool.
“Today we removed 103 Pages, Groups and accounts for engaging in
coordinated inauthentic behavior on Facebook and Instagram as part of a
network that originated in Pakistan,” Gleichner said in the statement.
“Although the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their
identities, our investigation found that it was linked to employees of the
ISPR (Inter-Service Public Relations) of the Pakistani military,” he said.
Gleichner said ISPR employees were operating military fan pages, as well as
pages on Kashmir, “general Pakistani interest”, and local and political news
including on topics such as arch-rival India’s army and politicians.
Some 2.8 million accounts followed one or more of the pages, he said.
Examples included a post from a page called “Pakistan Army – the BEST”,
with an image purporting to show a crashed Indian fighter jet with text
reading: “Indian airforce has become a consistent failure which is evident
from current embarrassment for India”.
Others praised Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan for promoting peace, or
propagated unverified claims a Pakistani pilot had shot down five Indian
planes.
“We are constantly working to detect and stop coordinated inauthentic
behavior because we don’t want our services to be used to manipulate people,”
Gleichner said.
An ISPR spokesman had no immediate comment when contacted by AFP.
Facebook also said it was removing 687 pages and accounts engaged in
similarly “inauthentic” behaviour that were linked to India’s opposition
Congress party, which is contesting nationwide elections due to start on
April 11.
Congress reacted cautiously, with spokesperson Manish Tewari saying the
party “will need to verify the veracity of these reports”.
A recent standoff between India and Pakistan over the disputed region of
Kashmir saw a deluge of “fake news” hit social media, raising concerns over
misinformation in the upcoming election in the world’s largest democracy.
Journalists in Pakistan, one of the most dangerous countries in the world
for media, are regularly exhorted by the military to promote a positive image
of the country. Any reporting considered critical of the military has long
been considered a red flag, with reporters at times detained, beaten and even
killed for falling foul of the security establishment.
The army has stirred unease previously with declarations it is monitoring
social media in Pakistan, where posts considered “against the glory of Islam
or the integrity, security or defence of Pakistan” are against the law.
BSS/AFP/ARS/1926 hrs