Meta has removed more than 3.7 million accounts, Pages and Groups from Facebook and Instagram in a joint crackdown on scam networks operating in West Africa.
The operation was disclosed by the company on Tuesday and involved 14 other technology companies and law enforcement agencies from 10 countries. It was coordinated by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency in partnership with the United States Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other agencies.
According to Meta, investigators shared leads on more than 30 suspected scam centres during the operation.
Law enforcement authorities confirmed the arrest of 28 individuals and the rescue of 117 people in Ghana. The victims had been trafficked and forced to work inside a residential compound, where they were held against their will and suffered malnutrition and physical and psychological abuse. The victims are pending return to Nigeria.
Meta said the majority of the accounts it removed appeared to target people in the United States and the United Kingdom, often using profiles that impersonated American and British users.
Other companies involved in the exercise included Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, Starlink, Adobe and Coinbase. Microsoft also suspended accounts suspected of being linked to the scam activity, while Coinbase said it identified more than 65 active victims and prevented losses exceeding $415,000.
The operation targeted schemes including cryptocurrency investment fraud, romance scams, fake job offers, impersonation of law enforcement and military personnel, and fraudulent online sales.
Authorities described it as the first joint disruption broadly targeting scam centres in West Africa.
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