Facebook removed hundreds of fake accounts tied to Saudi government

Another day, another massive account takedown on Facebook.

The company has removed hundreds of accounts, pages, and groups it says were tied to the Saudi Arabian government for engaging in “coordinated inauthentic behavior.” 

The ring of accounts consisted of 217 Facebook accounts, 144 pages, five groups, and 31 Instagram accounts, which combined reached more than a million people across Facebook and Instagram, according to the company.

“Although the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities, our review found links to individuals associated with the government of Saudi Arabia,” Facebook’s head of cybersecurity policy, Nathaniel Gleicher, wrote in a statement.

The accounts sometimes posed as local news organizations and “typically posted in Arabic about regional news and political issues,” Gleicher said. The accounts praised Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman and “frequently shared criticism of neighboring countries.”

The accounts spent more than $100,000 on Facebook and Instagram ads.

Separately, Gleicher said the company uncovered another mass influence campaign tied to the United Arab Emirates and Egypt that also consisted of hundreds of fake accounts and pages. The accounts were linked to two marketing firms, and were able to reach millions of people across Facebook and Instagram. 

As Facebook has ramped up its efforts to prevent state-sponsored propaganda campaigns, these kinds of disclosures have become somewhat routine. The company has previously disclosed numerous other influence campaigns tied to Russia, Iran, and other countries. 

Still, Facebook often struggles to keep up with the people behind these efforts. The accounts linked to the UAE were able to reach more than 13 million people on Facebook and more than 65,000 on Instagram, Facebook disclosed.