Meta deletes 63,000 accounts belonging to “Yahoo Boys”, ors

The parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, Meta Platforms Inc., announced in its Q1 2024 Adversarial Threat Report on Wednesday, July 24, 2024, that it has removed 63,000 accounts linked to the notorious scam group “Yahoo Boys.”

Over the past few weeks, Meta deleted accounts involved in financial sextortion scams and the distribution of blackmail scripts.

Meta reported that a smaller network of 2,500 accounts, linked to around 20 individuals, primarily targeted adult men in the United States.

These accounts used fake identities for their operations.

Meta identified and disabled these accounts through advanced technical signals and comprehensive investigations.

This enhanced its automated detection systems.

“Financial sextortion is a borderless crime, fueled in recent years by the increased activity of Yahoo Boys, loosely organized cybercriminals operating largely out of Nigeria that specialize in different types of scams,” the social media giant stated.

It added, “We’ve removed around 63,000 accounts in Nigeria attempting to target people with financial sextortion scams, including a coordinated network of around 2,500 accounts.”

“We’ve also removed a set of Facebook accounts, Pages, and groups run by Yahoo Boys—banned under our Dangerous Organizations and Individuals policy—that were attempting to organize, recruit and train new scammers,” they stated.

During the investigation, Meta discovered that although most of the scammers’ attempts were unsuccessful, some had targeted minors.

These cases were reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

Meta also disclosed that it shared information with other tech companies through the Tech Coalition’s Lantern program.

This collaboration aims to combat these scams across multiple platforms.

Furthermore, Meta, the parent company of Facebook, reported removing approximately 7,200 assets in Nigeria.

These included 1,300 Facebook accounts, 200 pages, and 5,700 groups that facilitated scam-related activities.

These assets were found offering scripts and guides for scams.

They also shared links to collections of photos used for creating fake accounts.

Since this disruption, Meta has actively blocked attempts from these groups to return, continuously enhancing its detection capabilities.

The company noted that it has been closely collaborating with law enforcement.

This includes supporting investigations and prosecutions by responding to legal requests and alerting authorities to imminent threats.

The social media giant stated that its efforts go beyond just removing accounts.

“We also fund and support NCMEC and the International Justice Mission to run Project Boost, a program that trains law enforcement agencies around the world in processing and acting on NCMEC reports.

“We’ve conducted several training sessions so far, including in Nigeria and the Cote d’Ivoire, with our most recent session taking place just last month,” the firm revealed.

To protect users, especially teens, Meta has implemented stricter messaging settings for users under 16 (under 18 in certain countries).

It also displays safety notices to encourage cautious behavior online.

Meta received a $220 million fine from Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission last week.

The penalty was due to multiple violations of data protection laws associated with WhatsApp.

Last week, Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission fined Meta $220 million.

The penalties were for multiple violations of data protection laws linked to WhatsApp.

The investigation, which began in May 2021, concluded that Meta’s privacy policies infringed on users’ rights.

This included unauthorized data sharing and discriminatory practices.

Meta intends to appeal the decision, citing disagreement with the findings and the imposed penalty.

Meanwhile, the FCCPC aims to ensure fair treatment of Nigerian users and enforce compliance with local regulations.

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