An April 26 attack by a female suicide bomber killed 3 Chinese teachers and their Pakistani driver
Asia3 days ago
Twitter has suspended hundreds of accounts reportedly linked to supporters of Philippine presidential frontrunner Ferdinand Marcos Jr, which the social media giant said had violated its rules on manipulation and spam.
The son and namesake of the country’s former dictator is drawing support from a massive social media campaign seeking to get him elected in May, which critics say is attempting to rewrite the family’s history.
Twitter said it had reviewed the accounts and hashtags identified in a recent article by Philippine news site Rappler.
More than 300 accounts had been removed “for violating our platform manipulation and spam policy,” Twitter said in a statement sent to AFP Saturday.
Most of them had been taken down before the Rappler article was published on Tuesday and an investigation was ongoing, it said.
Filipinos are among the world’s heaviest users of social media and the country has become a key battleground for fake news.
“With the Philippine elections taking place this May, we remain vigilant about identifying and eliminating suspected information campaigns targeting election conversations,” Twitter said.
Marcos Jr’s spokesman Vic Rodriguez said there was “no certainty” that all the suspended accounts belonged to supporters of the presidential hopeful.
Election victory for Marcos Jr would mark the ultimate political comeback for the family, which was chased into exile in the United States after its patriarch’s humiliating downfall in 1986.
Marcos Sr and his wife Imelda were accused of massive corruption while in power.
Recent voter surveys show Marcos Jr holding a huge lead over his nearest rival and nemesis Leni Robredo, who is the incumbent vice president.
Rappler said Marcos Jr supporters were “looking to dominate Twitter” and that many of the accounts it investigated were created around the time he announced his bid for the presidency in October.
ALSO READ:
The accounts pushed the narrative that the Marcoses were “victims” of the 1986 revolt and their return to Malacanang presidential palace is “long overdue”, it added.
Twitter said sharing political content on an account or rallying people do so via hashtags was allowed, “unless the accounts are inauthentic, compensated or automated, which we see no clear evidence of in this case.”
Last Monday, the social media giant said it was expanding a test feature that will allow users in Brazil, Spain and the Philippines to report misleading content.
An April 26 attack by a female suicide bomber killed 3 Chinese teachers and their Pakistani driver
Asia3 days ago
The company has 850 restaurants and employs 62,000 people in the country
Asia4 days ago
The ministry said in a statement that dozens of policemen, along with paramilitary troops, have been assigned to his residence
Asia4 days ago
Nineteen people were being treated in four hospitals, mostly for broken bones
Asia4 days ago
Khan was voted out of power last month through a no-confidence motion, which he alleges was masterminded by the US
Asia4 days ago
Blood samples from over 20 family members collected so far to carry out DNA profiling
Asia4 days ago
The island nation is witnessing mass protests amid an ongoing economic crisis
Asia5 days ago
Rescue operations have been underway for several hours now
Asia5 days ago