FACEBOOK DELETES SEVERAL PROFILES AND PAGES OF MOLDOVAN USERS

The Facebook removed 168 accounts, 28 pages and eight Instagram accounts for engaging in coordinated inauthentic behavior targeting people in Moldova.

In a press release, the Facebook leadership explained these actions by the appearance in the network of manipulative materials, connected with representatives of Moldovan authorities in the run-up to parliamentary elections.

"The page administrators and account owners typically posted about local news and political issues such as required Russian or English language education and reunification with Romania. They also shared manipulated photos, divisive narratives and satire and impersonated a local fact checking organization's page that called out other pages for spreading fake news", the Facebook informed.

The administrators published a number of screenshots of the deleted pages with photos of President Igor Dodon, DP leader Vlad Plahotniuc, Speaker of the Parliament Andrian Candu, as well as the created groups such as "Dodon is not my president".