63,000 Accounts Removed By Meta Over Alleged ‘Yahoo Boys’ Links

63,000 Accounts Removed By Meta Over Alleged ‘Yahoo Boys’ Links

In its Q1 2024 Adversarial Threat Report, Meta disclosed the removal of approximately 63,000 accounts, including a coordinated network of about 2,500 accounts associated with a group of around 20 individuals……. CONTINUE READING 

“These accounts primarily targeted adult men in the U.S., using fake profiles to mask their identities,” Meta stated.

The company employed advanced technical signals and extensive investigations to identify and disable these accounts, thereby strengthening its automated detection systems.

Meta highlighted the global nature of financial sextortion, increasingly perpetrated by groups like Yahoo Boys—loosely organized cybercriminals mainly operating from Nigeria, specializing in various scams.

“We have removed about 63,000 accounts in Nigeria engaged in financial sextortion attempts, which included a coordinated network of approximately 2,500 accounts,” Meta confirmed.

Additionally, Meta dismantled Facebook accounts, pages, and groups managed by Yahoo Boys, banned under its Dangerous Organizations and Individuals policy for organizing, recruiting, and training new scammers.

Meta’s global head of safety, Antigone Davis, emphasized that while most scam attempts targeted adults and were unsuccessful, some incidents involved minors, prompting reports to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC).

Meta also announced the removal of approximately 7,200 assets in Nigeria, encompassing 1,300 Facebook accounts, 200 pages, and 5,700 groups involved in sharing scam-related resources such as scripts, guides, and links to photo collections for creating fake accounts.

The company underscored its collaborative efforts with law enforcement, including responding to legal requests and alerting authorities to imminent threats. Meta supports initiatives like Project Boost, training law enforcement globally to act on NCMEC reports, with recent sessions held in Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire.