Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, says it has taken a number of steps to combat misinformation and defend its platforms from cyberattacks in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Ukraine is in a terrible condition. Our Meta teams have put in place a variety of safeguards to make our platforms and users in the region as safe as possible “Nick Clegg, Meta’s VP of Global Affairs, wrote on Twitter on Thursday.
Meta has set up a Special Operations Center, according to Clegg, that will respond in real time to remove misinformation, hate speech, or content that incites violence from its platforms. Anything from state-controlled media, as well as content that has been judged false by Meta’s fact checkers, will be labeled.
Finally, according to Clegg, Meta’s cybersecurity experts are looking for concerted attempts to exploit the platform. Facebook’s head of security policy, Nathaniel Gleicher, also announced that the company has released a new tool in Ukraine that allows users to lock their profiles for further privacy and protection. People who aren’t friends with these users won’t be able to download or share their profile photo or see posts on their timeline while their profile is locked.
https://twitter.com/nickclegg/status/1497056780219731973
Facebook has used a similar feature in war-torn areas before, including Afghanistan in 2021. Twitter also published a series of instructions on Thursday that should help users protect themselves from hacks. The firm advises how to create a strong password, enable two-factor authentication, and deactivate your account, among other things, in the thread.
The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has been backed by a slew of cyberattacks, including cyberattacks on Ukrainian banks and government websites. The European Union has established a rapid-response cybersecurity unit to assist Ukraine in defending itself against similar attacks.