AGS NEWS – Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, announced in its Q1 2024 Adversarial Threat Report that it has removed 63,000 accounts linked to the “Yahoo Boys” scam group.

These accounts, used for financial sextortion scams and distributing blackmail scripts, were deleted over the past few weeks. A smaller network of 2,500 accounts targeted adult men in the US using fake identities.

Meta identified and disabled these accounts through advanced technical signals and comprehensive investigations, improving its automated detection systems.

The company emphasized that financial sextortion, driven by the Yahoo Boys operating mainly out of Nigeria, is a growing borderless crime.

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Meta also removed a set of Facebook accounts, Pages, and groups run by Yahoo Boys under its Dangerous Organizations and Individuals policy.

During the investigation, Meta found most scam attempts were unsuccessful, but some targeted minors, leading to reports to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Meta shared information with other tech companies through the Tech Coalition’s Lantern program to combat these scams across platforms.

It also removed around 7,200 assets in Nigeria, including Facebook accounts, Pages, and groups that provided scam-related resources.

Meta has been working closely with law enforcement, supporting investigations and prosecutions by responding to legal requests and alerting authorities to imminent threats.

The company funds and supports NCMEC and the International Justice Mission’s Project Boost, training law enforcement globally.

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To protect users, especially teens, Meta implemented stricter messaging settings for users under 16 (under 18 in some countries) and displays safety notices to encourage cautious online behavior.

Last week, Meta was fined $220 million by Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission for data protection violations related to WhatsApp.

Meta plans to appeal the decision, disagreeing with the findings and penalty.