ugc_banner

US election 2020: Facebook removes fake pages created in China targeting Trump, Biden

WION Web Team
Washington, United StatesUpdated: Sep 23, 2020, 04:10 PM IST
main img
Donald Trump and Joe Biden Photograph:(Reuters)

Story highlights

In the United States, the network that operated the 'sliver of accounts', posted material both in support of and against presidential candidates President Donald Trump and his Democratic rival Joe Biden.

Social media platform Facebook has taken down fake pages created in China aimed at influencing this year's US election.

In the United States, the network that operated the ''sliver of accounts'', posted material both in support of and against presidential candidates President Donald Trump and his Democratic rival Joe Biden.

According to Facebook, the people behind the network tried to conceal their identity and location via virtual private networks and other methods.

The social networking company said it suspended 155 accounts on its main platform along with six Instagram accounts. 

Facebook cybersecurity policy chief Nathaniel Gleicher said that the takedown was the company's first of Chinese-based accounts on foreign-interference grounds with any engagement in US politics.

Concerns about foreign efforts to interfere in the election were underscored by a warning Tuesday from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security's cybersecurity agency that foreign actors and cybercriminals were likely to try to spread disinformation regarding the results of the election, including by creating fake websites or social media content aimed at discrediting the process.

US Intelligence officials warned last month about ongoing or potential efforts by China, Russia and Iran to interfere in November's election. In an August public assessment, the country's chief counterintelligence official, William Evanina, said officials had determined that Beijing regards Trump as unpredictable and wants to see him lose to Biden.

The statement said that China had been expanding its influence operations ahead of the election to ''shape the policy environment in the United States'' and had been weighing the pros and cons of taking more aggressive action.