Reuters.- Facebook said on Tuesday it had removed a network of accounts from Russia that was linked to a marketing company that aimed to recruit influencers to push anti-vaccine content.
The social media company said it had banned accounts connected to Fazze, a UK-registered subsidiary of marketing firm AdNow, which primarily operated from Russia, for violating its policy against foreign interference.
Facebook said the campaign used its platforms primarily to target audiences in India, Latin America and, to a lesser extent, the United States.
Company researchers called the campaign a “disinformation laundry,” creating misleading articles and petitions on forums such as Reddit, Medium, and Change.org, and using fake accounts on platforms such as Facebook and Instagram to amplify the content.
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Facebook said that while most of the campaign failed, it appeared to be intended to involve paid influencers and these posts attracted “some limited attention.”
False claims and conspiracy theories about Covid-19 and vaccines have proliferated on social media sites in recent months.
Major tech firms like Facebook have come under fire from US lawmakers and the administration of President Joe Biden, who say the spread of lies online about vaccines is making it harder to fight the pandemic.
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