As part of a revamp unveiled Tuesday Facebook aims to foster real-world relationships and make the platform a more intimate place for groups of friends.

The new features were introduced in a revamped Facebook app as the embattled social network embarks on a new strategy emphasizing private communications and small groups.

"As the world gets bigger and more connected, we need that sense of intimacy more than ever," Mark Zuckerberg said as he opened the F8 developer conference for the social networking giant.

"That's why I believe the future is private."

The new app made available to US users Tuesday aims for a new direction for Facebook: it eliminates the blue background and offers a range of new ways to connect, in line with Zuckerberg's vision to move away from the "digital town square" to a "digital living room."

Facebook's shift comes response to criticism over failing to curb misinformation and manipulation of the platform used by 2.3 billion people, and missteps on handling of private user data.

"It can be hard to find your sense of purpose when you are connected to billions of people at the same time," Zuckerberg told the developers gathered in San Jose, California.

"Privacy gives us the freedom to be ourselves."

The redesigned application, to be followed by a new Facebook website, symbolizes changes in how Facebook runs its business, Zuckerberg said.

"I know we don't exactly have the strongest reputation on privacy right now, to put it lightly," he said. "But I am committed to starting a new chapter for our product."

Dogs and politics

Changes announced Tuesday put groups at the centre of the experience and add dating, friend-making and events features intended to promote people getting together in real life, Facebook's new app head Fidji Simo told AFP ahead of F8.

The redesign is meant to make it easier for users to take part in communities, whether based on friendships, family ties or common interests, according to Simo.

"It's definitely part of Mark's bigger vision," she said.

The new design gives users more options for private and group connections.

While counterintuitive, Facebook sees the change as potentially bringing people with opposing political viewpoints together rather than separating them in "filter bubbles."

"We are seeing that groups can bridge people across dividing lines," Simo said.

"If you are a dog lover, you will find people who are dog lovers across all divides, political or otherwise," she added.

A "Meet New Friends" feature being gradually rolled out will let users opt into getting acquainted with others interested in fresh connections in shared communities.

An "Events" tab will expedite making real world, local plans with online friends.

Hidden crushes

Facebook also announced it is expanding its dating feature to 14 more countries including the Philippines, Singapore, Brazil and Chile.

A new feature called "Secret Crush" will let people signal which friends they are interested in romantically, but only letting the object of their fancy know it if that person makes similar interest known on a private crush list.

"We think there is a lot of potential in developing these relationships," Simo said.

"It's all built with privacy in mind, and with the goal of building meaningfully long-term relationships and not just hookups."

The ability for people in small groups to be able to communicate securely and privately is seen as essential to making the social network more intimate.

There are tens of millions of active groups on Facebook, and more than 400 million people belong to groups at the social network.

Leaner, faster Messenger

Separately, Facebook unveiled a Messenger app overhaul that makes the mobile software leaner, faster and more of an energy miser.

"We rewrote practically all of the code from scratch," Facebook head of messaging product Stan Chudnovsky told AFP.

"We made Messenger the fastest private communication hub on the planet."

Features built into the new Messenger app used by some 1.3 billion people build on the social network's broader vision of small-group-sharing in "virtual living rooms," according to Chudnovsky.

Facebook also announced it's Portal video call device would be available internationally starting with Canada in June and Europe later this year, and would allow calls over the WhatsApp messaging platform.

The Oculus Rift S and Oculus Quest headsets, starting at $399, will begin shipping on May 21, expanding Facebook's move into virtual reality and gaming, the company said.

As part of a revamp unveiled Tuesday Facebook aims to foster real-world relationships and make the platform a more intimate place for groups of friends. The new features were introduced in a revamped Facebook app as the embattled social network embarks on a new strategy emphasizing private communications and small groups.

As part of a revamp unveiled Tuesday Facebook aims to foster real-world relationships and make the platform a more intimate place for groups of friends. The new features were introduced in a revamped Facebook app as the embattled social network embarks on a new strategy emphasizing private communications and small groups. "As the world gets bigger and more connected, we need that sense of intimacy more than ever," Mark Zuckerberg said as he opened the F8 developer conference for the social networking giant. "That's why I believe the future is private." The new app made available to US users Tuesday aims for a new direction for Facebook: it eliminates the blue background and offers a range of new ways to connect, in line with Zuckerberg's vision to move away from the "digital town square" to a "digital living room." Facebook's shift comes response to criticism over failing to curb misinformation and manipulation of the platform used by 2.3 billion people, and missteps on handling of private user data. "It can be hard to find your sense of purpose when you are connected to billions of people at the same time," Zuckerberg told the developers gathered in San Jose, California. "Privacy gives us the freedom to be ourselves." The redesigned application, to be followed by a new Facebook website, symbolizes changes in how Facebook runs its business, Zuckerberg said. "I know we don't exactly have the strongest reputation on privacy right now, to put it lightly," he said. "But I am committed to starting a new chapter for our product." Dogs and politics Changes announced Tuesday put groups at the centre of the experience and add dating, friend-making and events features intended to promote people getting together in real life, Facebook's new app head Fidji Simo told AFP ahead of F8. The redesign is meant to make it easier for users to take part in communities, whether based on friendships, family ties or common interests, according to Simo. "It's definitely part of Mark's bigger vision," she said. The new design gives users more options for private and group connections. While counterintuitive, Facebook sees the change as potentially bringing people with opposing political viewpoints together rather than separating them in "filter bubbles." "We are seeing that groups can bridge people across dividing lines," Simo said. "If you are a dog lover, you will find people who are dog lovers across all divides, political or otherwise," she added. A "Meet New Friends" feature being gradually rolled out will let users opt into getting acquainted with others interested in fresh connections in shared communities. An "Events" tab will expedite making real world, local plans with online friends. Hidden crushes Facebook also announced it is expanding its dating feature to 14 more countries including the Philippines, Singapore, Brazil and Chile. A new feature called "Secret Crush" will let people signal which friends they are interested in romantically, but only letting the object of their fancy know it if that person makes similar interest known on a private crush list. "We think there is a lot of potential in developing these relationships," Simo said. "It's all built with privacy in mind, and with the goal of building meaningfully long-term relationships and not just hookups." The ability for people in small groups to be able to communicate securely and privately is seen as essential to making the social network more intimate. There are tens of millions of active groups on Facebook, and more than 400 million people belong to groups at the social network. Leaner, faster Messenger Separately, Facebook unveiled a Messenger app overhaul that makes the mobile software leaner, faster and more of an energy miser. "We rewrote practically all of the code from scratch," Facebook head of messaging product Stan Chudnovsky told AFP. "We made Messenger the fastest private communication hub on the planet." Features built into the new Messenger app used by some 1.3 billion people build on the social network's broader vision of small-group-sharing in "virtual living rooms," according to Chudnovsky. Facebook also announced it's Portal video call device would be available internationally starting with Canada in June and Europe later this year, and would allow calls over the WhatsApp messaging platform. The Oculus Rift S and Oculus Quest headsets, starting at $399, will begin shipping on May 21, expanding Facebook's move into virtual reality and gaming, the company said.

Got a crush on another Facebook user? The social network will help you connect

Asian markets mostly fell Friday with investors treading carefully as global slowdown worries return to the fore, with analysts pointing to an economic divergence between the US and the rest of the world.

Traders have been cheered by a string of better-than-expected earnings from corporate titans this reporting season, with Facebook, Microsoft and Amazon adding to the positive mood on Wall Street, but were unable to fuel broad gains.

However, there have been a couple of misses from other top firms, while crucially a series of downbeat data and central bank caution have dampened spirits.

Central banks in Japan, Sweden, Turkey and Ukraine, with an eye on the global outlook, on Thursday, took a dovish turn and flagged softer policy in the near future. That came after a growth forecast cut by the Bank of Canada.

Meanwhile, low inflation has led to speculation the Reserve Bank of Australia could soon cut borrowing costs, while the European Central Bank is battling weak eurozone growth.

On top of that, a drop in German business confidence fanned worries about the bloc's biggest economy, while South Korea saw its worst performance in 10 years during the first quarter.

But while the Federal Reserve has said it will not likely raise interest rates this year the US economy continues to outpace its peers and the jobs markets are flourishing, with Wall Street hitting new records this week. Eyes are now on the release of US growth data later Friday.

"While positive earning numbers have lent massive support to US equities, it's hard to ignore the inescapable fact that we are back to the divergent economic narrative where the US economy is on fire while ice water continued to pour over the rest of the globe," said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management.

Shanghai dropped 0.5 per cent in the morning, extending losses of more than two per cent Thursday as investors fret that a run of market-supporting stimulus measures aimed at supporting the economy could be coming to an end.

Tokyo ended the morning down 0.7 per cent, Seoul shed 0.4 per cent and Singapore added 0.1 per cent.

There were also losses in Taipei, Wellington and Jakarta.

However, Hong Kong rose 0.3 per cent after suffering five straight days of decline.

The broad losses come at the end of a tough week for markets, which have enjoyed a blockbuster start to the year, thanks to hopes for China-US trade talks.

On oil markets both main contracts continued to fall after this week, hitting six-month highs as traders await the response from OPEC and Russia after the US said it would not extend waivers that allow certain countries to buy crude from sanctions-hit Iran.

Observers said that after the jump in prices, selling was to be expected owing to a number of factors including the China-US trade talks, unrest in Libya, Venezuela's political crisis and the OPEC-Russia output caps.

Asian markets mostly fell Friday with investors treading carefully as global slowdown worries return to the fore, with analysts pointing to an economic divergence between the US and the rest of the world.

Asian markets mostly fell Friday with investors treading carefully as global slowdown worries return to the fore, with analysts pointing to an economic divergence between the US and the rest of the world. Traders have been cheered by a string of better-than-expected earnings from corporate titans this reporting season, with Facebook, Microsoft and Amazon adding to the positive mood on Wall Street, but were unable to fuel broad gains. However, there have been a couple of misses from other top firms, while crucially a series of downbeat data and central bank caution have dampened spirits. Central banks in Japan, Sweden, Turkey and Ukraine, with an eye on the global outlook, on Thursday, took a dovish turn and flagged softer policy in the near future. That came after a growth forecast cut by the Bank of Canada. Meanwhile, low inflation has led to speculation the Reserve Bank of Australia could soon cut borrowing costs, while the European Central Bank is battling weak eurozone growth. On top of that, a drop in German business confidence fanned worries about the bloc's biggest economy, while South Korea saw its worst performance in 10 years during the first quarter. But while the Federal Reserve has said it will not likely raise interest rates this year the US economy continues to outpace its peers and the jobs markets are flourishing, with Wall Street hitting new records this week. Eyes are now on the release of US growth data later Friday. "While positive earning numbers have lent massive support to US equities, it's hard to ignore the inescapable fact that we are back to the divergent economic narrative where the US economy is on fire while ice water continued to pour over the rest of the globe," said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management. Shanghai dropped 0.5 per cent in the morning, extending losses of more than two per cent Thursday as investors fret that a run of market-supporting stimulus measures aimed at supporting the economy could be coming to an end. Tokyo ended the morning down 0.7 per cent, Seoul shed 0.4 per cent and Singapore added 0.1 per cent. There were also losses in Taipei, Wellington and Jakarta. However, Hong Kong rose 0.3 per cent after suffering five straight days of decline. The broad losses come at the end of a tough week for markets, which have enjoyed a blockbuster start to the year, thanks to hopes for China-US trade talks. On oil markets both main contracts continued to fall after this week, hitting six-month highs as traders await the response from OPEC and Russia after the US said it would not extend waivers that allow certain countries to buy crude from sanctions-hit Iran. Observers said that after the jump in prices, selling was to be expected owing to a number of factors including the China-US trade talks, unrest in Libya, Venezuela's political crisis and the OPEC-Russia output caps.

Asian markets mostly down after mixed lead from Wall Street

Facebook said Monday it has hired a high-ranking US State Department lawyer credited with helping craft the controversial Patriot Act as the social network's new general counsel.

Jennifer Newstead will replace Colin Stretch, who announced in July that he planned to leave Facebook.

Newstead will oversee global legal functions at the California-based social network as it faces continued pressure from regulators regarding how well it safeguards user privacy and protects against the spread of misinformation or abuse on its platform.

"Jennifer is a seasoned leader whose global perspective and experience will help us fulfil our mission," Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg said in a statement.

"We are also truly grateful to Colin for his dedicated leadership and wise counsel over the past nine years."

Newstead was the first woman to lead the Office of the Legal Adviser at the State Department, a post she took in January 2018.

"Her expertise and sharp judgment on an array of critical foreign policy issues will be greatly missed," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said.

"I thank her for her outstanding service, and wish her all the best in the next phase of her career."

Previous government posts held by Newstead include being a lawyer under the administration of President George W. Bush and helping draft the Patriot Act, a counterterrorism law that dramatically expanded police and surveillance powers.

"I'm excited to be joining Facebook at an important time," Newstead said in an online post.

"I am looking forward to working with the team and outside experts and regulators on a range of legal issues as we seek to uphold our responsibilities and shared values."

Facebook also announced that John Pinette has been hired at the social network's new vice president of global communications, succeeding Caryn Marooney.

Pinette has a lengthy history in the technology sector, most recently Vulcan Inc, an organization overseeing business and philanthropic endeavours for the estate of late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.

"John's deep understanding of the technology industry and his experience leading communications teams will be invaluable to helping us communicate the work we do at Facebook every day," Sandberg said.

Facebook said Monday it has hired a high-ranking US State Department lawyer credited with helping craft the controversial Patriot Act as the social network's new general counsel.

Facebook said Monday it has hired a high-ranking US State Department lawyer credited with helping craft the controversial Patriot Act as the social network's new general counsel. Jennifer Newstead will replace Colin Stretch, who announced in July that he planned to leave Facebook. Newstead will oversee global legal functions at the California-based social network as it faces continued pressure from regulators regarding how well it safeguards user privacy and protects against the spread of misinformation or abuse on its platform. "Jennifer is a seasoned leader whose global perspective and experience will help us fulfil our mission," Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg said in a statement. "We are also truly grateful to Colin for his dedicated leadership and wise counsel over the past nine years." Newstead was the first woman to lead the Office of the Legal Adviser at the State Department, a post she took in January 2018. "Her expertise and sharp judgment on an array of critical foreign policy issues will be greatly missed," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said. "I thank her for her outstanding service, and wish her all the best in the next phase of her career." Previous government posts held by Newstead include being a lawyer under the administration of President George W. Bush and helping draft the Patriot Act, a counterterrorism law that dramatically expanded police and surveillance powers. "I'm excited to be joining Facebook at an important time," Newstead said in an online post. "I am looking forward to working with the team and outside experts and regulators on a range of legal issues as we seek to uphold our responsibilities and shared values." Facebook also announced that John Pinette has been hired at the social network's new vice president of global communications, succeeding Caryn Marooney. Pinette has a lengthy history in the technology sector, most recently Vulcan Inc, an organization overseeing business and philanthropic endeavours for the estate of late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. "John's deep understanding of the technology industry and his experience leading communications teams will be invaluable to helping us communicate the work we do at Facebook every day," Sandberg said.

Facebook hires high-ranking US State Department lawyer

Google, <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-rights-groups-hit-out-at-singapores-fake-news-bill-207343">Facebook</a> and Twitter have to do more to tackle fake news ahead of key European Parliament elections next month, the European Commission said on Tuesday, as its latest report showed a lack of progress in some areas.

The monthly reports follow a pledge made by the tech giants and advertising trade bodies in October last year to combat the spread of fake news and avoid more heavy-handed regulations.

The EU has warned of foreign interference during campaigning for the European Parliament elections and national elections in Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Poland, Portugal and Ukraine in recent and coming months.

"Further technical improvements, as well as sharing of methodology and data sets for fake accounts, are necessary to allow third-party experts, fact-checkers and researchers to carry out the independent evaluation," the EU executive said.

The Commission said Google had made insufficient progress in defining issue-based advertising. The report covered actions taken by the companies in March.

It said Facebook, which took down eight coordinated inauthentic behaviour networks originating in North Macedonia, Kosovo and Russia, failed to disclose whether these affected EU users.

Twitter also fell short because it did not provide details on its measures against spam and fake accounts and also did not report on any action to improve the scrutiny of ad placements.

Google, Facebook and Twitter have to do more to tackle fake news ahead of key European Parliament elections next month, the European Commission said on Tuesday, as its latest report showed a lack of progress in some areas.

Google, Facebook and Twitter have to do more to tackle fake news ahead of key European Parliament elections next month, the European Commission said on Tuesday, as its latest report showed a lack of progress in some areas. The monthly reports follow a pledge made by the tech giants and advertising trade bodies in October last year to combat the spread of fake news and avoid more heavy-handed regulations. The EU has warned of foreign interference during campaigning for the European Parliament elections and national elections in Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Poland, Portugal and Ukraine in recent and coming months. "Further technical improvements, as well as sharing of methodology and data sets for fake accounts, are necessary to allow third-party experts, fact-checkers and researchers to carry out the independent evaluation," the EU executive said. The Commission said Google had made insufficient progress in defining issue-based advertising. The report covered actions taken by the companies in March. It said Facebook, which took down eight coordinated inauthentic behaviour networks originating in North Macedonia, Kosovo and Russia, failed to disclose whether these affected EU users. Twitter also fell short because it did not provide details on its measures against spam and fake accounts and also did not report on any action to improve the scrutiny of ad placements.

Google, Facebook, Twitter have to do more to fight fake news: European Union

"Millions" of Instagram users had their passwords stored in unencrypted form on internal servers,<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-bans-uk-far-right-groups-including-bnp-edl-britain-first-211564"> Facebook</a> said Thursday, raising its original estimate of tens of thousands.

"We discovered additional logs of Instagram passwords being stored in a readable format. We now estimate that this issue impacted millions of Instagram users," Facebook said in a blog post.

"We will be notifying these users as we did the others. Our investigation has determined that these stored passwords were not internally abused or improperly accessed," the social network said.

Facebook, Instagram's parent company, revealed last month that the unencrypted passwords of hundreds of millions of users had been stored, putting the number of Instagram users affected in the tens of thousands.

The social network's handling of user data has been a flashpoint for controversy since it admitted last year that Cambridge Analytica, a political consultancy, used an app that may have hijacked the private details of 87 million users.

Facebook has announced a series of moves to tighten handling of data, including eliminating most of its data-sharing partnerships with outside companies.

The California firm reaches an estimated 2.7 billion people with its core social network, Instagram and messaging applications.

"Millions" of Instagram users had their passwords stored in unencrypted form on internal servers, Facebook said Thursday, raising its original estimate of tens of thousands.

"Millions" of Instagram users had their passwords stored in unencrypted form on internal servers, Facebook said Thursday, raising its original estimate of tens of thousands. "We discovered additional logs of Instagram passwords being stored in a readable format. We now estimate that this issue impacted millions of Instagram users," Facebook said in a blog post. "We will be notifying these users as we did the others. Our investigation has determined that these stored passwords were not internally abused or improperly accessed," the social network said. Facebook, Instagram's parent company, revealed last month that the unencrypted passwords of hundreds of millions of users had been stored, putting the number of Instagram users affected in the tens of thousands. The social network's handling of user data has been a flashpoint for controversy since it admitted last year that Cambridge Analytica, a political consultancy, used an app that may have hijacked the private details of 87 million users. Facebook has announced a series of moves to tighten handling of data, including eliminating most of its data-sharing partnerships with outside companies. The California firm reaches an estimated 2.7 billion people with its core social network, Instagram and messaging applications.

Facebook says it stored 'millions' of unencrypted Instagram passwords

Facebook chose one of the busiest news days in American politics this year to admit that millions more Instagram users were affected by a security lapse than it had previously disclosed.

Facebook security lapse affects millions more Instagram users than first stated

Facebook said on Wednesday it may have "unintentionally uploaded" email contacts of 1.5 million new users since May 2016, in what seems to be the latest privacy-related issue faced by the social media company.

In March, Facebook had stopped offering email password verification as an option for people who signed up for the first time, the company said. There were cases in which email contacts of people were uploaded to Facebook when they created their account, the company said.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-instagram-whatsapp-hit-by-outages-downdetector-210332">Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp hit by outages; users fume on Twitter</a>

"We estimate that up to 1.5 million people's email contacts may have been uploaded. These contacts were not shared with anyone and we are deleting them," Facebook told Reuters, adding that users whose contacts were imported will be notified.

The underlying glitch has been fixed, according to the company statement.

Business Insider had earlier reported that the social media company harvested email contacts of the users without their knowledge or consent when they opened their accounts.

When an email password was entered, a message popped up saying it was "importing" contacts without asking for permission first, the report said.

Facebook has been hit by a number of privacy-related issues recently, including a glitch that exposed passwords of millions of users stored in readable format within its internal systems to its employees.

Last year, the company came under fire following revelations that Cambridge Analytica, a British political consulting firm, obtained personal data of millions of people's Facebook profiles without their consent.

The company has also been facing criticism from lawmakers across the world for what has been seen by some as tricking people into giving personal data to Facebook and for the presence of hate speech and data portability on the platform.

Separately, Facebook was asked to ensure its social media platform is not abused for political purposes or to spread misinformation during elections.

Facebook said on Wednesday it may have "unintentionally uploaded" email contacts of 1.5 million new users since May 2016, in what seems to be the latest privacy-related issue faced by the social media company.

Facebook said on Wednesday it may have "unintentionally uploaded" email contacts of 1.5 million new users since May 2016, in what seems to be the latest privacy-related issue faced by the social media company. In March, Facebook had stopped offering email password verification as an option for people who signed up for the first time, the company said. There were cases in which email contacts of people were uploaded to Facebook when they created their account, the company said. Also read: Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp hit by outages; users fume on Twitter "We estimate that up to 1.5 million people's email contacts may have been uploaded. These contacts were not shared with anyone and we are deleting them," Facebook told Reuters, adding that users whose contacts were imported will be notified. The underlying glitch has been fixed, according to the company statement. Business Insider had earlier reported that the social media company harvested email contacts of the users without their knowledge or consent when they opened their accounts. When an email password was entered, a message popped up saying it was "importing" contacts without asking for permission first, the report said. Facebook has been hit by a number of privacy-related issues recently, including a glitch that exposed passwords of millions of users stored in readable format within its internal systems to its employees. Last year, the company came under fire following revelations that Cambridge Analytica, a British political consulting firm, obtained personal data of millions of people's Facebook profiles without their consent. The company has also been facing criticism from lawmakers across the world for what has been seen by some as tricking people into giving personal data to Facebook and for the presence of hate speech and data portability on the platform. Separately, Facebook was asked to ensure its social media platform is not abused for political purposes or to spread misinformation during elections.

Facebook says it uploaded email contacts of up to 1.5 million users

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-says-it-uploaded-email-contacts-of-up-to-15-million-users-211383">Social media giant Facebook</a> on Thursday banned various far-right British groups including the English Defence League from its network for promoting hate and violence.

Other groups kicked off both Facebook or Instagram include Knights Templar International, Britain First, the British National Party (BNP) and the National Front.

The tech titan banned the groups for contravening its policy forbidding "terrorist activity, organised hate, mass or serial murder, human trafficking or organised violence or criminal activity".

"Individuals and organisations who spread hate, or attack or call for the exclusion of others on the basis of who they are, have no place on Facebook," a spokeswoman for Facebook said.

"We ban those who proclaim a violent or hateful mission or are engaged in acts of hate or violence.&nbsp;

"Posts and other content which expresses praise or support for these figures and groups will also be banned."

Former BNP leader Nick Griffin and Britain First leaders Paul Golding and Jayda Fransen have also been banned in the crackdown.

Social media giant Facebook on Thursday banned various far-right British groups including the English Defence League from its network for promoting hate and violence.

Social media giant Facebook on Thursday banned various far-right British groups including the English Defence League from its network for promoting hate and violence. Other groups kicked off both Facebook or Instagram include Knights Templar International, Britain First, the British National Party (BNP) and the National Front. The tech titan banned the groups for contravening its policy forbidding "terrorist activity, organised hate, mass or serial murder, human trafficking or organised violence or criminal activity". "Individuals and organisations who spread hate, or attack or call for the exclusion of others on the basis of who they are, have no place on Facebook," a spokeswoman for Facebook said. "We ban those who proclaim a violent or hateful mission or are engaged in acts of hate or violence. "Posts and other content which expresses praise or support for these figures and groups will also be banned." Former BNP leader Nick Griffin and Britain First leaders Paul Golding and Jayda Fransen have also been banned in the crackdown.

Facebook bans UK far-right groups including BNP, EDL & Britain First

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg gave access to sensitive user data to dozens of app developer friends, according to thousands of leaked documents. Zuckerberg reportedly used the data as a reward to third party companies and developers who either had a favourable relationship with company executives or spent considerable amounts on ads.

Leaked documents reveal Facebook secrets

Facebook social networking site, photo-sharing social network Instagram and messaging app WhatsApp were inaccessible to some users on Sunday.

As per the website Downdetector, which monitor global outages, there were more than 12,000 incidents of people reporting issues with Facebook at its peak, but that figure dropped to about 2,000 reports.

Facebook experienced one of its longest outages in March when some users around the globe faced trouble accessing Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp for more than 24 hours.

The outage monitoring website also showed that at the peak on Sunday, there were more than 3,000 incidents of people reporting issues with WhatsApp and 7,000 with Instagram.

The website's live outage map showed that the issues were mainly in Europe and Asia.

Users took to Twitter to complain about the outage, tweeting jokes and comments using&nbsp;the #facebookdown, #whatsappdown and #instagramdown hashtags.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/facebook?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#facebook</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/instagram?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#instagram</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/whatsapp?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#whatsapp</a> are both down so I guess I have to socialize with my friends now
— Danny Muscat (@Danny_muscat) <a href="https://twitter.com/Danny_muscat/status/1117402599467229184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 14, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">×</a></div>

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Last man standing <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WhatsappDown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WhatsappDown</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FacebookDown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FacebookDown</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/instagramDown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#instagramDown</a> <a href="https://t.co/RaSVUEeyYp">pic.twitter.com/RaSVUEeyYp</a>
— Hitsodokotela (@hillaryhitso) <a href="https://twitter.com/hillaryhitso/status/1117409801523400704?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 14, 2019</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/whatsappdown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#whatsappdown</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/InstagramDown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#InstagramDown</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FacebookDown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FacebookDown</a> 
Those who don't use twitter, 
Right now: <a href="https://t.co/ZFeBfI391z">pic.twitter.com/ZFeBfI391z</a>
— Zia Ullah Jan (@ZiaUllah52552) <a href="https://twitter.com/ZiaUllah52552/status/1117407985100365829?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 14, 2019</a></blockquote>
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Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Facebook social networking site, photo-sharing social network Instagram and messaging app WhatsApp were inaccessible to some users on Sunday. As per the website Downdetector, which monitor global outages, there were more than 12,000 incidents of people reporting issues with Facebook at its peak, but that figure dropped to about 2,000 reports.

Facebook social networking site, photo-sharing social network Instagram and messaging app WhatsApp were inaccessible to some users on Sunday. As per the website Downdetector, which monitor global outages, there were more than 12,000 incidents of people reporting issues with Facebook at its peak, but that figure dropped to about 2,000 reports. Facebook experienced one of its longest outages in March when some users around the globe faced trouble accessing Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp for more than 24 hours. The outage monitoring website also showed that at the peak on Sunday, there were more than 3,000 incidents of people reporting issues with WhatsApp and 7,000 with Instagram. The website's live outage map showed that the issues were mainly in Europe and Asia. Users took to Twitter to complain about the outage, tweeting jokes and comments using the #facebookdown, #whatsappdown and #instagramdown hashtags. #facebook #instagram and #whatsapp are both down so I guess I have to socialize with my friends now — Danny Muscat (@Danny_muscat) April 14, 2019 × Last man standing #WhatsappDown #FacebookDown #instagramDown pic.twitter.com/RaSVUEeyYp — Hitsodokotela (@hillaryhitso) April 14, 2019 × #whatsappdown#InstagramDown#FacebookDown Those who don't use twitter, Right now: pic.twitter.com/ZFeBfI391z — Zia Ullah Jan (@ZiaUllah52552) April 14, 2019 × Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp hit by outages; users fume on Twitter

Facebook and Google on Tuesday (April 9) defended their efforts to remove hate speech from social media sites amid questions from lawmakers in an appearance before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee.

US Congress turns up the heat on FB, Google

French lawmakers on Monday approved a new tax on digital giants such as Facebook and Apple that has angered the United States, with Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire boasting that France was proud to be in the vanguard of such a move.

The United States has urged its NATO ally to drop the plan, with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warning last week that it would hurt both the American firms and the French citizens who use the platforms.

The measure was approved by 55 votes against four in the National Assembly, with five abstentions. It will then be put to vote in the Senate, or upper house, before becoming law.&nbsp;

The legislation, dubbed "Gafa" after Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple, comes amid rising public outrage at the minimal tax paid by some of the world's richest firms.

"France is honoured to be leading on such subjects," Le Maire told parliament before the vote, saying that the draft constituted a "step... towards fairer and more efficient taxation for the 21st century."

Responding to the criticism from the United States, Le Maire said France was "determined" to press on with the legislation and would be "sovereign" on fiscal issues.

He said it was "unacceptable" that digital giants could make considerable profits from user data so that the "profits are made in France but the taxes are imposed abroad".

Last month, France unveiled the draft legislation to set a three per cent tax on digital advertising, the sale of personal data and other revenue for any technology company that earns more than 750 million euros ($840 million) worldwide each year.

France is seeking to agree the legislation on a national level after a European Union-wide effort was scuttled by low-tax countries such as Ireland, which have wooed big technology firms.

But Le Maire insisted that a "good solution in the long term will be a multilateral solution," vowing not to let up in efforts for an agreement within the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

French lawmakers on Monday approved a new tax on digital giants such as Facebook and Apple that has angered the United States, with Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire boasting that France was proud to be in the vanguard of such a move.

French lawmakers on Monday approved a new tax on digital giants such as Facebook and Apple that has angered the United States, with Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire boasting that France was proud to be in the vanguard of such a move. The United States has urged its NATO ally to drop the plan, with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warning last week that it would hurt both the American firms and the French citizens who use the platforms. The measure was approved by 55 votes against four in the National Assembly, with five abstentions. It will then be put to vote in the Senate, or upper house, before becoming law. The legislation, dubbed "Gafa" after Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple, comes amid rising public outrage at the minimal tax paid by some of the world's richest firms. "France is honoured to be leading on such subjects," Le Maire told parliament before the vote, saying that the draft constituted a "step... towards fairer and more efficient taxation for the 21st century." Responding to the criticism from the United States, Le Maire said France was "determined" to press on with the legislation and would be "sovereign" on fiscal issues. He said it was "unacceptable" that digital giants could make considerable profits from user data so that the "profits are made in France but the taxes are imposed abroad". Last month, France unveiled the draft legislation to set a three per cent tax on digital advertising, the sale of personal data and other revenue for any technology company that earns more than 750 million euros ($840 million) worldwide each year. France is seeking to agree the legislation on a national level after a European Union-wide effort was scuttled by low-tax countries such as Ireland, which have wooed big technology firms. But Le Maire insisted that a "good solution in the long term will be a multilateral solution," vowing not to let up in efforts for an agreement within the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

French MPs approve digital tax, defying US ire

Britain will make social media bosses personally liable for harmful content and shut down offending platforms under a "world-leading" government plan published Monday in response to the spread of online abuses and crimes.

The long-delayed and eagerly anticipated proposals lay the groundwork for legislation that could be passed in the coming months.

They were drawn up after consultations with social media moguls such as Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg and have faced little resistance from other platforms that have also been blamed for inciting harmful behaviour online.

But some of the proposals have sparked concerns from free speech groups.

"What we're proposing today is that companies that deal with user-generated content should take greater responsibility for keeping those users safe," culture and media minister Jeremy Wright told BBC radio.

"These are world-leading proposals."

Australia also fast-tracked legislation last week that threatened jailed time for social media executives who failed to enact the "expeditious removal" of footage of terrorism and other odious crimes.

Punitive sanctions

Australia's laws came in direct response to last month's live broadcast by Facebook and YouTube of the slaying of 50 Muslim worshippers in New Zealand.

Britain's initiative was born out of public anger over the 2017 suicide of a 14-year-old girl who followed social media accounts about depression and self-harm.

The proposed UK regulations would see social media companies accept "duty of care" obligations that require them to identify and remove "online harms".

Those that fail would be first issued warnings and then hit progressively with more punitive sanctions.

The government paper suggests that these include "the creation of new liability (civil fines or extended to criminal liability) for individual senior managers".

The most serious would see internet service providers block non-compliant websites and apps.

"This would only be considered as an option of last resort and deploying such an option would be a decision for the independent regulator alone," the plan says.

The regulations would only apply in Britain and should have no immediate impact on users elsewhere in the world.

But they may prompt other governments to take notice and follow suit.

Wright suggested the fines would be substantial.

He noted that those available to European Union authorities implementing the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) rules on data privacy reached "up to four per cent of a company's turnover".

"We think we should be looking at something comparable here," Wright told BBC television.

Minefield of problems

Wright's office is navigating a minefield of problems regulating an industry that largely functions outside the bounds of existing legislation -- and whose harms are open to interpretation and remain undefined.

A joint letter sent by media executives to the British government in February stressed that legislation must be "technically possible to implement in practice... (and) be targeted at specific harms".

The government paper lists both "harms with a clear legal definition" and "harms with a less clear legal definition".

The first includes terrorist activity and a range of cyber-stalking and hate crimes.

The second lists disinformation and "violent content" as a whole.

What types of harm fall where would be established by a new regulator whose enforcement powers would be funded by the social media companies themselves.

Libertarian ethos

The social media boom was born in the spirit of a libertarian Silicon Valley ethos of innovation and non-interference from the government.

But the industry is now facing a litany of dangers that range from the spread of state propaganda to promotion of teen suicide and live streaming or murders and serious crimes.

The techUK industry lobby group admitted Monday that platforms' attempts at self-regulation have fallen short.

But it also urged the government to avoid "creating discrepancies in law between the online and offline worlds".

Twitter UK public policy chief Katy Minshall said her platform would work with the government "to strike an appropriate balance between keeping users safe and preserving the open, free nature of the internet."

Britain's Article 19 free speech group also warned that the proposed legislation "could violate individuals' rights to freedom of expression and privacy".

Britain will make social media bosses personally liable for harmful content and shut down offending platforms under a "world-leading" government plan published Monday in response to the spread of online abuses and crimes.

Britain will make social media bosses personally liable for harmful content and shut down offending platforms under a "world-leading" government plan published Monday in response to the spread of online abuses and crimes. The long-delayed and eagerly anticipated proposals lay the groundwork for legislation that could be passed in the coming months. They were drawn up after consultations with social media moguls such as Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg and have faced little resistance from other platforms that have also been blamed for inciting harmful behaviour online. But some of the proposals have sparked concerns from free speech groups. "What we're proposing today is that companies that deal with user-generated content should take greater responsibility for keeping those users safe," culture and media minister Jeremy Wright told BBC radio. "These are world-leading proposals." Australia also fast-tracked legislation last week that threatened jailed time for social media executives who failed to enact the "expeditious removal" of footage of terrorism and other odious crimes. Punitive sanctions Australia's laws came in direct response to last month's live broadcast by Facebook and YouTube of the slaying of 50 Muslim worshippers in New Zealand. Britain's initiative was born out of public anger over the 2017 suicide of a 14-year-old girl who followed social media accounts about depression and self-harm. The proposed UK regulations would see social media companies accept "duty of care" obligations that require them to identify and remove "online harms". Those that fail would be first issued warnings and then hit progressively with more punitive sanctions. The government paper suggests that these include "the creation of new liability (civil fines or extended to criminal liability) for individual senior managers". The most serious would see internet service providers block non-compliant websites and apps. "This would only be considered as an option of last resort and deploying such an option would be a decision for the independent regulator alone," the plan says. The regulations would only apply in Britain and should have no immediate impact on users elsewhere in the world. But they may prompt other governments to take notice and follow suit. Wright suggested the fines would be substantial. He noted that those available to European Union authorities implementing the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) rules on data privacy reached "up to four per cent of a company's turnover". "We think we should be looking at something comparable here," Wright told BBC television. Minefield of problems Wright's office is navigating a minefield of problems regulating an industry that largely functions outside the bounds of existing legislation -- and whose harms are open to interpretation and remain undefined. A joint letter sent by media executives to the British government in February stressed that legislation must be "technically possible to implement in practice... (and) be targeted at specific harms". The government paper lists both "harms with a clear legal definition" and "harms with a less clear legal definition". The first includes terrorist activity and a range of cyber-stalking and hate crimes. The second lists disinformation and "violent content" as a whole. What types of harm fall where would be established by a new regulator whose enforcement powers would be funded by the social media companies themselves. Libertarian ethos The social media boom was born in the spirit of a libertarian Silicon Valley ethos of innovation and non-interference from the government. But the industry is now facing a litany of dangers that range from the spread of state propaganda to promotion of teen suicide and live streaming or murders and serious crimes. The techUK industry lobby group admitted Monday that platforms' attempts at self-regulation have fallen short. But it also urged the government to avoid "creating discrepancies in law between the online and offline worlds". Twitter UK public policy chief Katy Minshall said her platform would work with the government "to strike an appropriate balance between keeping users safe and preserving the open, free nature of the internet." Britain's Article 19 free speech group also warned that the proposed legislation "could violate individuals' rights to freedom of expression and privacy".

UK takes aim at social networks that fail to quash 'hateful' content

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-to-tighten-live-stream-access-after-mosque-attacks-206634">Facebook</a> will block election advertising from outside <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/australias-economy-slows-ahead-of-election-201452">Australia ahead of polls next month</a>, in the wake of growing criticism of the social media giant's role in the spread of disinformation.

The restrictions -- already rolled out for polls in other countries such as Thailand and Indonesia -- will come into force when the government announces the election date in the coming days.

"We're temporarily not allowing electoral ads purchased from outside Australia ahead of the election in May," Facebook's Australia and New Zealand policy director Mia Garlick said in a statement.

"The restriction... will apply to ads we determine to be coming from foreign entities that are of an electoral nature, meaning they contain references to politicians, parties or election suppression.

"We also won't allow foreign ads that include political slogans and party logos."

Facebook said it has introduced restrictions on foreign electoral ads in countries including Nigeria, Ukraine, Thailand, Indonesia, and Ireland around its May 2018 referendum on abortion.&nbsp;

For the European Parliamentary elections, it requires advertisers to be authorised in their country to run ads related to the vote.

The world's biggest social network first began looking into its influence on elections after revelations of Russian influence campaigns during the 2016 US election.

Critics have accused the US firm of being too slow to act.

AFP has a global fact-checking network that is dedicated to verifying and debunking disinformation spread online.&nbsp;

Some of this content is flagged on Facebook, as part of a contract between AFP and the social media company. AFP's collaboration with Facebook has just been extended to Australia.

Facebook will block election advertising from outside Australia ahead of polls next month, in the wake of growing criticism of the social media giant's role in the spread of disinformation.

Facebook will block election advertising from outside Australia ahead of polls next month, in the wake of growing criticism of the social media giant's role in the spread of disinformation. The restrictions -- already rolled out for polls in other countries such as Thailand and Indonesia -- will come into force when the government announces the election date in the coming days. "We're temporarily not allowing electoral ads purchased from outside Australia ahead of the election in May," Facebook's Australia and New Zealand policy director Mia Garlick said in a statement. "The restriction... will apply to ads we determine to be coming from foreign entities that are of an electoral nature, meaning they contain references to politicians, parties or election suppression. "We also won't allow foreign ads that include political slogans and party logos." Facebook said it has introduced restrictions on foreign electoral ads in countries including Nigeria, Ukraine, Thailand, Indonesia, and Ireland around its May 2018 referendum on abortion. For the European Parliamentary elections, it requires advertisers to be authorised in their country to run ads related to the vote. The world's biggest social network first began looking into its influence on elections after revelations of Russian influence campaigns during the 2016 US election. Critics have accused the US firm of being too slow to act. AFP has a global fact-checking network that is dedicated to verifying and debunking disinformation spread online. Some of this content is flagged on Facebook, as part of a contract between AFP and the social media company. AFP's collaboration with Facebook has just been extended to Australia.

Facebook to block foreign ads for Australia election

New Zealand Prime Minister <a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.wionews.com/world/young-muslim-boy-invites-new-zealand-pm-jacinda-ardern-to-join-islam-205508&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=0ahUKEwiD7LvRh7bhAhUc7HMBHRTLDzcQFggFMAA&amp;client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;usg=AOvVaw1xavZjdn7_qqUqWkeGk6q2">Jacinda Ardern </a>on Thursday admitted to paying another mother's grocery bill after the stranger forgot her wallet, a light moment for a leader still receiving plaudits for her handling of a gun massacre at two mosques.

The <a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.wionews.com/videos/new-zealand-pm-ardern-pays-a-strangers-grocery-bill-207868&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=0ahUKEwiBs4Doh7bhAhX17XMBHQxAAxAQFggEMAA&amp;client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;usg=AOvVaw19YuFMfKMv_qH2l-mu9RuC">unnamed woman </a>wrote on Facebook that "just when you think Jacinda Ardern couldn't get any more lovely, low key and authentic ... she goes and pays for your groceries at the supermarket because you've got your shopping, have two kids with you and are about to put it all back as you forgot your wallet," local news website Stuff Ltd reported.

Ardern confirmed making the payment when asked about it by local media. When asked why she paid the other person's bill, Ardern replied, "because she was a mum", without offering further explanation.

In the Facebook post, which was deleted, the unnamed woman wrote how she tried to explain to her children how the prime minister had just bought their groceries, according to Stuff.

"All they cared about was how silly mummy was forgetting her wallet. Totally lost on them," the website reported.

Ardern, who last year joined the tiny club of female political leaders to give birth while in power, has been receiving praise around the world for her actions since a lone gunman stormed two mosques in the city of Christchurch and shot dead 50 people and injured dozens more.

Within days of the March 15 attack, Ardern, 37, banned semi-automatic weapons, called for the country's most powerful type of public inquiry into the incident and demanded world leaders take action to stop violent content on social media.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Thursday admitted to paying another mother's grocery bill after the stranger forgot her wallet, a light moment for a leader still receiving plaudits for her handling of a gun massacre at two mosques.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Thursday admitted to paying another mother's grocery bill after the stranger forgot her wallet, a light moment for a leader still receiving plaudits for her handling of a gun massacre at two mosques. The unnamed woman wrote on Facebook that "just when you think Jacinda Ardern couldn't get any more lovely, low key and authentic ... she goes and pays for your groceries at the supermarket because you've got your shopping, have two kids with you and are about to put it all back as you forgot your wallet," local news website Stuff Ltd reported. Ardern confirmed making the payment when asked about it by local media. When asked why she paid the other person's bill, Ardern replied, "because she was a mum", without offering further explanation. In the Facebook post, which was deleted, the unnamed woman wrote how she tried to explain to her children how the prime minister had just bought their groceries, according to Stuff. "All they cared about was how silly mummy was forgetting her wallet. Totally lost on them," the website reported. Ardern, who last year joined the tiny club of female political leaders to give birth while in power, has been receiving praise around the world for her actions since a lone gunman stormed two mosques in the city of Christchurch and shot dead 50 people and injured dozens more. Within days of the March 15 attack, Ardern, 37, banned semi-automatic weapons, called for the country's most powerful type of public inquiry into the incident and demanded world leaders take action to stop violent content on social media.

New Zealand PM Ardern pays an unnamed womens grocery bill

Facebook Inc on Monday took down 15 pages and accounts that engaged in coordinated inauthentic behaviour in India and were linked to individuals associated with an Indian IT firm, Silver Touch.

Facebook's head of cybersecurity policy Nathaniel Gleicher was quoted by Reuters news agency as saying that the social media giant was only aware that 'Silver Touch'&nbsp;was an Indian IT firm which worked for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government and is associated with Narendra Modi`s mobile application, the 'NaMo App'&nbsp;.

After BJP's IT head Amit Malviya told Reuters that both the party and the app had "nothing to do with Silver Touch," the wire agency quoted an updated statement by Facebook late on Monday that stated that the social media giant had "seen no evidence to date of Silver Touch being associated with the NaMo App on our platform."

"We won't be speculating about off-platform connections of the actors we took down today," a spokeswoman was quoted by the newswire.

"The only link Facebook saw was that the company was associated with a mobile application promoted by Modi," Gleicher was quoted as saying earlier.

Facebook had also on Monday announced that it<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/no-official-pages-taken-down-says-congress-after-facebook-removed-687-pages-linked-to-party-207247"> removed 687 pages and accounts linked to the Congress party</a> for "coordinated inauthentic behaviour".

"We removed 687 Facebook Pages and accounts -- the majority of which had already been detected and suspended by our automated systems -- that engaged in coordinated inauthentic behaviour in India and were linked to individuals associated with an IT Cell of the Indian National Congress (INC)," Gleicher said in a statement.

Gleicher also stated that the social media giant has taken the step of removing the accounts on the basis of their behaviour and not their content.

The US-based social media platform added that its investigation found individuals using fake accounts to spread content, criticising Prime Minister Modi and the BJP.

"While the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities, our review found that it was connected to individuals associated with an INC IT Cell," the statement noted.

The Congress party, however, denied the allegations."We don't react to the news reports which may just be coming in, whether there are any Facebook pages which are linked to us. We will have to check and get back to you. We will have to check the veracity of the report. I don't think any news organisation can claim that what they print is gospel, we have the right to check what has been published," Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari told reporters in New Delhi on Monday.

In recent times, Facebook has taken firm steps to regulate political advertisements in order to ensure that the platform is not used for spreading misinformation at a time when general elections in the world's largest democracy are around the corner.&nbsp;

Facebook Inc on Monday took down 15 pages and accounts that engaged in coordinated inauthentic behaviour in India and were linked to individuals associated with an Indian IT firm, Silver Touch.

Facebook Inc on Monday took down 15 pages and accounts that engaged in coordinated inauthentic behaviour in India and were linked to individuals associated with an Indian IT firm, Silver Touch. Facebook's head of cybersecurity policy Nathaniel Gleicher was quoted by Reuters news agency as saying that the social media giant was only aware that 'Silver Touch' was an Indian IT firm which worked for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government and is associated with Narendra Modi`s mobile application, the 'NaMo App' . After BJP's IT head Amit Malviya told Reuters that both the party and the app had "nothing to do with Silver Touch," the wire agency quoted an updated statement by Facebook late on Monday that stated that the social media giant had "seen no evidence to date of Silver Touch being associated with the NaMo App on our platform." "We won't be speculating about off-platform connections of the actors we took down today," a spokeswoman was quoted by the newswire. "The only link Facebook saw was that the company was associated with a mobile application promoted by Modi," Gleicher was quoted as saying earlier. Facebook had also on Monday announced that it removed 687 pages and accounts linked to the Congress party for "coordinated inauthentic behaviour". "We removed 687 Facebook Pages and accounts -- the majority of which had already been detected and suspended by our automated systems -- that engaged in coordinated inauthentic behaviour in India and were linked to individuals associated with an IT Cell of the Indian National Congress (INC)," Gleicher said in a statement. Gleicher also stated that the social media giant has taken the step of removing the accounts on the basis of their behaviour and not their content. The US-based social media platform added that its investigation found individuals using fake accounts to spread content, criticising Prime Minister Modi and the BJP. "While the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities, our review found that it was connected to individuals associated with an INC IT Cell," the statement noted. The Congress party, however, denied the allegations."We don't react to the news reports which may just be coming in, whether there are any Facebook pages which are linked to us. We will have to check and get back to you. We will have to check the veracity of the report. I don't think any news organisation can claim that what they print is gospel, we have the right to check what has been published," Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari told reporters in New Delhi on Monday. In recent times, Facebook has taken firm steps to regulate political advertisements in order to ensure that the platform is not used for spreading misinformation at a time when general elections in the world's largest democracy are around the corner.

Facebook says no evidence of 'Silver Touch' associated with NaMo App

Facebook to remove 687 Cong-linked pages on bases of behavior, content

Facebook has removed 103 pages, groups and accounts that were part of a network it said were linked to employees of the Pakistani military’s public relations arm, the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/lok-sabha-polls-2019-facebook-removes-687-pages-accounts-linked-to-congress-it-cell-ahead-of-elections-207189">social media group </a>announced on Monday.

Facebook said it removed pages and accounts on Facebook and Instagram that spread information about Pakistani politics and political leaders, the Indian government and the Pakistani military.

“Today we removed 103 pages, Groups and accounts for engaging in coordinated inauthentic behaviour on Facebook and Instagram as part of a network that originated in Pakistan,” Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook’s head of cybersecurity, said in a statement.

“Although the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities, our investigation found that it was linked to employees of the ISPR (Inter-Service Public Relations) of the Pakistani military.”

ISPR did not respond to requests for comment.

Facebook’s announcement comes at a time when it has been facing increasing pressure across the world over the use of its platforms by politically aligned groups, many of which conceal their true identity.

Facebook has removed 103 pages, groups and accounts that were part of a network it said were linked to employees of the Pakistani military’s public relations arm, the social media group announced on Monday.

Facebook has removed 103 pages, groups and accounts that were part of a network it said were linked to employees of the Pakistani military’s public relations arm, the social media group announced on Monday. Facebook said it removed pages and accounts on Facebook and Instagram that spread information about Pakistani politics and political leaders, the Indian government and the Pakistani military. “Today we removed 103 pages, Groups and accounts for engaging in coordinated inauthentic behaviour on Facebook and Instagram as part of a network that originated in Pakistan,” Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook’s head of cybersecurity, said in a statement. “Although the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities, our investigation found that it was linked to employees of the ISPR (Inter-Service Public Relations) of the Pakistani military.” ISPR did not respond to requests for comment. Facebook’s announcement comes at a time when it has been facing increasing pressure across the world over the use of its platforms by politically aligned groups, many of which conceal their true identity.

Facebook takes down Pakistan military-backed pages targeting India

Facebook Inc has removed a social media network in the Philippines for "coordinated inauthentic behaviour", and took the unusual step of linking it to a businessman who said he had managed the president's online election campaign in 2016.

Facebook said its investigation found that the online activity was linked to a network organised by a former chief executive of Omnicom Media Group Philippines, who it identified as Nic Gabunada, and said it had removed 200 pages of groups and accounts on Facebook and Instagram.

"The individuals behind this activity used a combination of authentic and fake accounts to disseminate content across a variety of pages and groups", Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook's head of Cybersecurity Policy, said in a statement, dated on Thursday.

"They frequently posted about local and political news, including topics like the upcoming elections, candidate updates and views, alleged misconduct of political opponents, and controversial events that were purported to occur during previous administrations," he said.

Facebook said it had taken down the pages and accounts "based on their behaviour, not the content they posted".

Gabunada told ABS-CBN News that it was "unfortunate" that Facebook linked him to the questionable pages and accounts.

"If they will have to take down my account, it's their prerogative. On the other hand, they have to consider I'm not doing it for the sake of whatever it is that they're accusing me of," Gabunada said.

In an interview with the news site Rappler in May 2016, shortly after President Rodrigo Duterte had been elected, Gabunada said he had volunteered to help lead Duterte's social media team during his campaign.

Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Assistant Secretary Ana Marie Banaag said Duterte has only one communications group, the PCOO, and Gabunada is not part of it.

Duterte, a former city mayor from outside of the political elite, tapped into social media to help him win the 2016 election by a big margin.

The Philippines is due to hold mid-term elections in May 2019 that are seen as a referendum on Duterte's administration.

At least one of the pages taken down by Facebook was named "Duterte Warriors".

Another was named "Bong Go Supporters", referring to supporters of the president's longtime special assistant, Christopher "Bong" Go, who is running for the Senate.

Studies have shown that the Philippines at times has led the world when it comes to sending text messages, using Facebook, and posting selfies.

Filipinos in 2017 spent on average nearly four hours a day on social media, more than any other country, according to a 2018 report by social media management firms, We Are Social and Hootsuite.

Facebook Inc has removed a social media network in the Philippines for "coordinated inauthentic behaviour", and took the unusual step of linking it to a businessman who said he had managed the president's online election campaign in 2016.

Facebook Inc has removed a social media network in the Philippines for "coordinated inauthentic behaviour", and took the unusual step of linking it to a businessman who said he had managed the president's online election campaign in 2016. Facebook said its investigation found that the online activity was linked to a network organised by a former chief executive of Omnicom Media Group Philippines, who it identified as Nic Gabunada, and said it had removed 200 pages of groups and accounts on Facebook and Instagram. "The individuals behind this activity used a combination of authentic and fake accounts to disseminate content across a variety of pages and groups", Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook's head of Cybersecurity Policy, said in a statement, dated on Thursday. "They frequently posted about local and political news, including topics like the upcoming elections, candidate updates and views, alleged misconduct of political opponents, and controversial events that were purported to occur during previous administrations," he said. Facebook said it had taken down the pages and accounts "based on their behaviour, not the content they posted". Gabunada told ABS-CBN News that it was "unfortunate" that Facebook linked him to the questionable pages and accounts. "If they will have to take down my account, it's their prerogative. On the other hand, they have to consider I'm not doing it for the sake of whatever it is that they're accusing me of," Gabunada said. In an interview with the news site Rappler in May 2016, shortly after President Rodrigo Duterte had been elected, Gabunada said he had volunteered to help lead Duterte's social media team during his campaign. Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Assistant Secretary Ana Marie Banaag said Duterte has only one communications group, the PCOO, and Gabunada is not part of it. Duterte, a former city mayor from outside of the political elite, tapped into social media to help him win the 2016 election by a big margin. The Philippines is due to hold mid-term elections in May 2019 that are seen as a referendum on Duterte's administration. At least one of the pages taken down by Facebook was named "Duterte Warriors". Another was named "Bong Go Supporters", referring to supporters of the president's longtime special assistant, Christopher "Bong" Go, who is running for the Senate. Studies have shown that the Philippines at times has led the world when it comes to sending text messages, using Facebook, and posting selfies. Filipinos in 2017 spent on average nearly four hours a day on social media, more than any other country, according to a 2018 report by social media management firms, We Are Social and Hootsuite.

Facebook removes online network in Philippines over 'inauthentic behaviour'

Facebook on Wednesday banned praise, support and representation of white nationalism and white separatism, a move that drew qualified approval from New Zealand where <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/new-zealand-mosque-attacks-youngest-victim-was-3-years-old-say-families-203805">a massacre of 50 people in mosques</a> was live-streamed earlier this month.

Civil rights groups have said social media giants have failed to confront extremism and that was under the spotlight this month after a suspected white supremacist broadcast live footage of his attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/google-facebook-to-pay-publishers-for-use-of-news-in-eu-205923">Facebook</a>, Twitter&nbsp;and YouTube have been under pressure to remove white supremacist and neo-Nazi content from their platforms, along with fake news and other types of abusive posts.

In response, Facebook has beefed up its content monitoring teams and taken down event pages that were used to promote and organize rallies by white supremacist groups.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who has called for social media platforms to be accountable for what users post, said material covered by the measures should arguably have already been banned under Facebook's hate-speech rules.

"Having said that, I'm pleased to see that they are including it, and that they have taken that step, but I still think that there is a conversation to be had with the international community about whether or not enough has been done," she told a media conference in Christchurch on Thursday.

"There are lessons to be learnt here in Christchurch and we don't want anyone to have to learn those lesson over again."

The policy will be enforced next week, Facebook said in a blog post, and will apply to both its core Facebook app and Instagram.

Facebook has long banned white supremacy under its rules on "hateful" content, but did not previously consider white nationalist or separatist content to be explicitly racist.

Tech publication Motherboard, which first reported the policy change on Wednesday, revealed that the company was maintaining the distinction last year after an investigation into its content moderation policies.

Civil rights groups say there is no distinction between the ideologies.

In a statement, Facebook said it had initially been wary of infringing on broader concepts of nationalism and separatism, which it said are "an important part of people's identity."

"But over the past three months our conversations with members of civil society and academics who are experts in race relations around the world have confirmed that white nationalism and separatism cannot be meaningfully separated from white supremacy and organized hate groups," the company said.

"Going forward, while people will still be able to demonstrate pride in their ethnic heritage, we will not tolerate praise or support for white nationalism and separatism."

Facebook said it would also start connecting people who search for terms associated with white supremacy to an organization called Life After Hate, focused on helping people leave hate groups.

Life After Hate did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Representative Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the US&nbsp;House Committee on Homeland Security, welcomed the new approach but lamented that Facebook had not made the change sooner.

"This should have happened long ago," Thompson said in a statement. "For too long, Facebook has allowed hate speech – and the violence that it can inspire – to propagate on its platform. Since billions use its service, we must demand more from them."

Facebook on Wednesday banned praise, support and representation of white nationalism and white separatism, a move that drew qualified approval from New Zealand where a massacre of 50 people in mosques was live-streamed earlier this month.

Facebook on Wednesday banned praise, support and representation of white nationalism and white separatism, a move that drew qualified approval from New Zealand where a massacre of 50 people in mosques was live-streamed earlier this month. Civil rights groups have said social media giants have failed to confront extremism and that was under the spotlight this month after a suspected white supremacist broadcast live footage of his attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand. Facebook, Twitter and YouTube have been under pressure to remove white supremacist and neo-Nazi content from their platforms, along with fake news and other types of abusive posts. In response, Facebook has beefed up its content monitoring teams and taken down event pages that were used to promote and organize rallies by white supremacist groups. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who has called for social media platforms to be accountable for what users post, said material covered by the measures should arguably have already been banned under Facebook's hate-speech rules. "Having said that, I'm pleased to see that they are including it, and that they have taken that step, but I still think that there is a conversation to be had with the international community about whether or not enough has been done," she told a media conference in Christchurch on Thursday. "There are lessons to be learnt here in Christchurch and we don't want anyone to have to learn those lesson over again." The policy will be enforced next week, Facebook said in a blog post, and will apply to both its core Facebook app and Instagram. Facebook has long banned white supremacy under its rules on "hateful" content, but did not previously consider white nationalist or separatist content to be explicitly racist. Tech publication Motherboard, which first reported the policy change on Wednesday, revealed that the company was maintaining the distinction last year after an investigation into its content moderation policies. Civil rights groups say there is no distinction between the ideologies. In a statement, Facebook said it had initially been wary of infringing on broader concepts of nationalism and separatism, which it said are "an important part of people's identity." "But over the past three months our conversations with members of civil society and academics who are experts in race relations around the world have confirmed that white nationalism and separatism cannot be meaningfully separated from white supremacy and organized hate groups," the company said. "Going forward, while people will still be able to demonstrate pride in their ethnic heritage, we will not tolerate praise or support for white nationalism and separatism." Facebook said it would also start connecting people who search for terms associated with white supremacy to an organization called Life After Hate, focused on helping people leave hate groups. Life After Hate did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Representative Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the US House Committee on Homeland Security, welcomed the new approach but lamented that Facebook had not made the change sooner. "This should have happened long ago," Thompson said in a statement. "For too long, Facebook has allowed hate speech – and the violence that it can inspire – to propagate on its platform. Since billions use its service, we must demand more from them."

Facebook bans white nationalism, white separatism on its platforms after New Zealand mosque massacre

Facebook bans white nationalism, white separatism on its platforms

EU lawmakers have endorsed an overhaul of the bloc's two-decade old <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/eu-countries-back-copyright-reforms-aimed-at-google-facebook-198643">copyright rules</a>, which will force <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/european-union-fines-google-149-billion-euros-for-anti-trust-breach-204538">Google</a> and Facebook Inc to pay publishers for use of news snippets and make them filter out protected content.

The European Parliament backed the reforms by 348 votes to 274 on Tuesday after a debate that has pitted Europe's creative industry against tech companies, internet activists and consumer groups concerned that the new rules may be too costly and block too much content.

The European Commission began reviewing the rules two years ago in a bid to protect an industry that is worth 915 billion euros ($1.03 trillion) a year, accounting for 11.65 million jobs and 6.8 percent of the EU economy.

The new rules mean that Google and other online platforms will have to sign licensing agreements with musicians, performers, authors, news publishers and journalists to use their work online.

Google's YouTube, Facebook's Instagram and other sharing platforms will also have to install filters to prevent users from uploading copyrighted materials.

Both provisions triggered fierce lobbying from both sides.

The Commission's digital chief for Europe Andrus Ansip welcomed the outcome, saying the reforms would improve the position of writers, journalists, singers, musicians and actors vis-a-vis the big platforms using their content.

"Today's vote ensures the right balance between the interests of all players – users, creators, authors, press – while putting in place proportionate obligations on online platforms," he said in a statement.

But Google said the reforms would lead to legal uncertainty and hurt Europe's creative and digital economies. The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) echoed the criticism.

"Consumers will have to bear the consequences of this decision. Their concerns had been voiced loud and clearly but MEPs chose to ignore them," BEUC director general Monique Goyens said.

Firefox browser-maker Mozilla was scathing about the vote.

"The EU institutions have squandered the progress made by innovators and creators to imagine new content and share it with people across the world," its EU policy head Raegan MacDonald said.

"They have handed the power back to large U.S. owned record labels, film studios and big tech.

Vast swathes of online services, not just those concerning music or news, could face unintended consequences, said Raffaella De Santis at law firm Harbottle &amp; Lewis.

"Care will need to be taken to ensure that smaller services are not disproportionately disadvantaged by measures which are in reality designed to curtail the formerly unchecked power of the tech giants," she said.

Lawmaker Julia Reda, a prominent critic of the reforms, said they threatened the free internet.

"Algorithms cannot distinguish between actual copyright infringements and the perfectly legal re-use of content for purposes such as parody," she said.

But lawmaker Axel Voss, who is in charge of the subject, rejected the criticism.

"We have agreed a new set of rules which will do exactly the opposite of killing the internet," he said.

Last month, Finland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Poland refused to back the reforms

EU lawmakers have endorsed an overhaul of the bloc's two-decade old copyright rules, which will force Google and Facebook Inc to pay publishers for use of news snippets and make them filter out protected content.

EU lawmakers have endorsed an overhaul of the bloc's two-decade old copyright rules, which will force Google and Facebook Inc to pay publishers for use of news snippets and make them filter out protected content. The European Parliament backed the reforms by 348 votes to 274 on Tuesday after a debate that has pitted Europe's creative industry against tech companies, internet activists and consumer groups concerned that the new rules may be too costly and block too much content. The European Commission began reviewing the rules two years ago in a bid to protect an industry that is worth 915 billion euros ($1.03 trillion) a year, accounting for 11.65 million jobs and 6.8 percent of the EU economy. The new rules mean that Google and other online platforms will have to sign licensing agreements with musicians, performers, authors, news publishers and journalists to use their work online. Google's YouTube, Facebook's Instagram and other sharing platforms will also have to install filters to prevent users from uploading copyrighted materials. Both provisions triggered fierce lobbying from both sides. The Commission's digital chief for Europe Andrus Ansip welcomed the outcome, saying the reforms would improve the position of writers, journalists, singers, musicians and actors vis-a-vis the big platforms using their content. "Today's vote ensures the right balance between the interests of all players – users, creators, authors, press – while putting in place proportionate obligations on online platforms," he said in a statement. But Google said the reforms would lead to legal uncertainty and hurt Europe's creative and digital economies. The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) echoed the criticism. "Consumers will have to bear the consequences of this decision. Their concerns had been voiced loud and clearly but MEPs chose to ignore them," BEUC director general Monique Goyens said. Firefox browser-maker Mozilla was scathing about the vote. "The EU institutions have squandered the progress made by innovators and creators to imagine new content and share it with people across the world," its EU policy head Raegan MacDonald said. "They have handed the power back to large U.S. owned record labels, film studios and big tech. Vast swathes of online services, not just those concerning music or news, could face unintended consequences, said Raffaella De Santis at law firm Harbottle & Lewis. "Care will need to be taken to ensure that smaller services are not disproportionately disadvantaged by measures which are in reality designed to curtail the formerly unchecked power of the tech giants," she said. Lawmaker Julia Reda, a prominent critic of the reforms, said they threatened the free internet. "Algorithms cannot distinguish between actual copyright infringements and the perfectly legal re-use of content for purposes such as parody," she said. But lawmaker Axel Voss, who is in charge of the subject, rejected the criticism. "We have agreed a new set of rules which will do exactly the opposite of killing the internet," he said. Last month, Finland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Poland refused to back the reforms

Google, Facebook to pay publishers for use of news in EU

A gas explosion in a secretive enclave run by the ethnic Wa in Myanmar's eastern borderlands has killed 16 people and injured dozens, the United Wa State Army (UWSA) said Sunday.

Emergency workers could be seen trawling through debris at the explosion site in Mongmaw town in a video posted on Facebook by UWSA spokesman Nyi Rang.

"Sixteen people were killed and 48 others injured in a gas explosion accident," he wrote, confirming that the blast occurred early Saturday evening.

Permission to access the remote zone is rarely granted, making it difficult to independently verify information.

The self-proclaimed Wa State on the border between China and Myanmar only has an estimated population of some 600,000 people.

But it enjoys an unusual degree of autonomy within Myanmar and boasts the country's largest non-state army of around 30,000 soldiers.

This year the Wa are celebrating a 30-year ceasefire with the nation's military, and in a rare move are due to open their doors for three days in April to outsiders, including foreigners.

In 1989, Wa troops mutinied against the leaders of the Communist Party of Burma who were driven into exile in China.

The subsequent truce signed between the UWSA and the military junta has proven relatively stable in a country where the Myanmar army is still fighting wars against various ethnic armed groups.

The Wa have very close links to neighbouring China. Mandarin is far more widely spoken than Myanmar (Burmese) and the self-administered zone's economy depends on cross-border trade.

The blast on Saturday came just two days after China experienced one of its worst industrial accidents in recent years, where an explosion at a chemical plant in Yancheng in the country's east left scores dead.

A gas explosion in a secretive enclave run by the ethnic Wa in Myanmar's eastern borderlands has killed 16 people and injured dozens, the United Wa State Army (UWSA) said Sunday.

A gas explosion in a secretive enclave run by the ethnic Wa in Myanmar's eastern borderlands has killed 16 people and injured dozens, the United Wa State Army (UWSA) said Sunday. Emergency workers could be seen trawling through debris at the explosion site in Mongmaw town in a video posted on Facebook by UWSA spokesman Nyi Rang. "Sixteen people were killed and 48 others injured in a gas explosion accident," he wrote, confirming that the blast occurred early Saturday evening. Permission to access the remote zone is rarely granted, making it difficult to independently verify information. The self-proclaimed Wa State on the border between China and Myanmar only has an estimated population of some 600,000 people. But it enjoys an unusual degree of autonomy within Myanmar and boasts the country's largest non-state army of around 30,000 soldiers. This year the Wa are celebrating a 30-year ceasefire with the nation's military, and in a rare move are due to open their doors for three days in April to outsiders, including foreigners. In 1989, Wa troops mutinied against the leaders of the Communist Party of Burma who were driven into exile in China. The subsequent truce signed between the UWSA and the military junta has proven relatively stable in a country where the Myanmar army is still fighting wars against various ethnic armed groups. The Wa have very close links to neighbouring China. Mandarin is far more widely spoken than Myanmar (Burmese) and the self-administered zone's economy depends on cross-border trade. The blast on Saturday came just two days after China experienced one of its worst industrial accidents in recent years, where an explosion at a chemical plant in Yancheng in the country's east left scores dead.

Gas explosion kills 16 in Myanmar's remote Wa state: Wa army

Facebook Inc said on Thursday it has resolved a glitch that exposed passwords of millions of users stored in readable format within its internal systems to its employees.

The passwords were accessible to as many as 20,000 Facebook employees and dated back as early as 2012, cybersecurity blog KrebsOnSecurity, which first reported the issue, said in its report.

"These passwords were never visible to anyone outside of Facebook and we have found no evidence to date that anyone internally abused or improperly accessed them," the company said.

KrebsOnSecurity, citing a senior Facebook employee, said the internal investigation by the company so far indicates that between 200 million and 600 million Facebook users may have had their account passwords stored in plain text.

Facebook said the issue was discovered in January as part of a routine security review. Majority of the affected were users of Facebook Lite, a version of the social media app largely used by people in regions with lower connectivity.

The social network is also probing the causes of a series of security failures, in which employees built applications that logged unencrypted password data for Facebook users, the report said.

"We estimate that we will notify hundreds of millions of Facebook Lite users, tens of millions of other Facebook users, and tens of thousands of Instagram users," the company said.

Facebook Inc said on Thursday it has resolved a glitch that exposed passwords of millions of users stored in readable format within its internal systems to its employees.

Facebook Inc said on Thursday it has resolved a glitch that exposed passwords of millions of users stored in readable format within its internal systems to its employees. The passwords were accessible to as many as 20,000 Facebook employees and dated back as early as 2012, cybersecurity blog KrebsOnSecurity, which first reported the issue, said in its report. "These passwords were never visible to anyone outside of Facebook and we have found no evidence to date that anyone internally abused or improperly accessed them," the company said. KrebsOnSecurity, citing a senior Facebook employee, said the internal investigation by the company so far indicates that between 200 million and 600 million Facebook users may have had their account passwords stored in plain text. Facebook said the issue was discovered in January as part of a routine security review. Majority of the affected were users of Facebook Lite, a version of the social media app largely used by people in regions with lower connectivity. The social network is also probing the causes of a series of security failures, in which employees built applications that logged unencrypted password data for Facebook users, the report said. "We estimate that we will notify hundreds of millions of Facebook Lite users, tens of millions of other Facebook users, and tens of thousands of Instagram users," the company said.

Facebook fixes glitch that exposed millions of user passwords to employees

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/new-zealand-mosque-shootings-kill-49-in-what-pm-calls-terrorist-attack-203560">New Zealand mosque shootings kill 49 in what PM calls 'terrorist attack'</a>

At least one gunman killed 49 people and wounded more than 40 during Friday prayers at two New Zealand mosques in the country's worst ever mass shooting, which Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern condemned as terrorism.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/islamic-world-reacts-with-disgust-at-new-zealand-mosque-attacks-203532">Islamic world reacts with disgust at New Zealand mosque attacks</a>

Political and Islamic leaders expressed their disgust at the deadly shooting at two mosques in New Zealand on Friday, with some citing rising "Islamophobia" as being responsible.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/france-freezes-jem-chief-masood-azhars-assets-will-also-take-up-his-listing-with-eu-203478">France freezes JeM chief Masood Azhar's assets, will also take up his listing with EU</a>

France has decided to freeze the assets of Masood Azhar, chief of the terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed which claimed the responsibility for the Pulwama terror attack that killed more than 40 CRPF personnel on February 14.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/social-media-platforms-say-they-are-taking-measures-to-remove-nz-shooting-content-203539">Social media platforms say they are removing New Zealand shooting content</a>

Social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter said on Friday they are taking measures to take down content involving mass shootings at two New Zealand mosques that killed at least 49 people and wounded more than 20 others.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/india-had-global-support-says-sushma-swaraj-on-masood-azhar-listing-203563">India had global support, says Sushma Swaraj on Masood Azhar listing&nbsp;</a>

A day after China blocked the listing of Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar under United Nations terror list and opposition Congress lashed out at Centre, India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Friday in series of tweets claimed India got support from the global community for the move.

New Zealand mosque shootings kill 49 in what PM calls 'terrorist attack' At least one gunman killed 49 people and wounded more than 40 during Friday prayers at two New Zealand mosques in the country's worst ever mass shooting, which Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern condemned as terrorism.

New Zealand mosque shootings kill 49 in what PM calls 'terrorist attack' At least one gunman killed 49 people and wounded more than 40 during Friday prayers at two New Zealand mosques in the country's worst ever mass shooting, which Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern condemned as terrorism. Islamic world reacts with disgust at New Zealand mosque attacks Political and Islamic leaders expressed their disgust at the deadly shooting at two mosques in New Zealand on Friday, with some citing rising "Islamophobia" as being responsible. France freezes JeM chief Masood Azhar's assets, will also take up his listing with EU France has decided to freeze the assets of Masood Azhar, chief of the terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed which claimed the responsibility for the Pulwama terror attack that killed more than 40 CRPF personnel on February 14. Social media platforms say they are removing New Zealand shooting content Social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter said on Friday they are taking measures to take down content involving mass shootings at two New Zealand mosques that killed at least 49 people and wounded more than 20 others. India had global support, says Sushma Swaraj on Masood Azhar listing A day after China blocked the listing of Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar under United Nations terror list and opposition Congress lashed out at Centre, India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Friday in series of tweets claimed India got support from the global community for the move.

News brief: Big stories of the day

A day after the users of social&nbsp;networking site <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-instagram-down-in-large-parts-of-the-the-world-203174">Facebook and Instagram</a> experienced the site going down for several hours,&nbsp;Facebook authorities on Thursday clarified that the site went down not because of any&nbsp;Denial of service attack(DDoS).

Facebook tweeted, "We're focused on working to resolve the issue as soon as possible, but can confirm that the issue is not related to a DDoS attack".

A DoS (denial-of-service) attack uses a single computer and internet connection to attack a target and shut it down.&nbsp;In the&nbsp;attack, the perpetrator seeks to disconnect the services by disrupting operations of a host connected to the internet.

A DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attack, on the other hand, uses several computers and internet connections to do the same thing.&nbsp;

A DoS attack is, therefore, easier to fight back against since it would require the blocking of only one IP address.&nbsp;

While&nbsp;numerous users said they were unable to access the site on mobile phones or computer screens, many others found it working on their phone.

Some users got a message on their&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-presidential-hopeful-warren-wants-breakup-of-google-facebook-and-amazon-202089">Facebook</a>&nbsp;screens saying the social networking site was down for maintenance purposes but would be back up soon.&nbsp;

Others just came up against a blank page.&nbsp;

A day after the users of social networking site Facebook and Instagram experienced the site going down for several hours, Facebook authorities on Thursday clarified that the site went down not because of any Denial of service attack(DDoS).

A day after the users of social networking site Facebook and Instagram experienced the site going down for several hours, Facebook authorities on Thursday clarified that the site went down not because of any Denial of service attack(DDoS). Facebook tweeted, "We're focused on working to resolve the issue as soon as possible, but can confirm that the issue is not related to a DDoS attack". A DoS (denial-of-service) attack uses a single computer and internet connection to attack a target and shut it down. In the attack, the perpetrator seeks to disconnect the services by disrupting operations of a host connected to the internet. A DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attack, on the other hand, uses several computers and internet connections to do the same thing. A DoS attack is, therefore, easier to fight back against since it would require the blocking of only one IP address. While numerous users said they were unable to access the site on mobile phones or computer screens, many others found it working on their phone. Some users got a message on their Facebook screens saying the social networking site was down for maintenance purposes but would be back up soon. Others just came up against a blank page.

'Facebook down not due to DDoS': Know what DDos attack is

Facebook said on Thursday it had restored service to its main app and Instagram, after the world's largest social network suffered a major outage that frustrated users across the globe for about 24 hours.

The company also said it was considering whether to refund advertisers for lost exposure due to the problems, which internet outage trackers showed affected users in Europe, Japan, North and South America.

"Yesterday, a <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/working-to-resolve-the-issue-as-soon-as-possible-facebook-203216">server configuration issue made it difficult for people to access our apps</a> and services. We are 100 per cent back up and running and apologize for any inconvenience," a Facebook spokesperson said.

"We are still investigating the overall impact of this issue, including the possibility of refunds for advertisers."

Facebook takes tens of millions of dollars of advertising revenue every day.

Media reports earlier said millions of users were affected, and thousands took to Twitter on Wednesday and Thursday to complain under the hashtag #facebookdown.

DownDetector website - one of the internet's most used sources of numbers on outages - showed the number of complaints had peaked at more than 12,000, gradually falling to about 180 as of 11 am&nbsp;ET on Thursday.

The BBC and a handful of other media outlets said it was the platform's longest ever outage. Reuters was not immediately able to verify those claims and the company declined to comment beyond the statement on resumption of services.

Facebook's shares fell nearly 2 per cent in morning trading on Thursday.

INVESTIGATION

Separately, the New York Times reported on Wednesday that US federal prosecutors were conducting a criminal investigation into data deals Facebook struck with more than 150 technology companies such as Amazon and Apple.

Facebook is facing a slew of lawsuits and regulatory inquiries over its privacy practices, including ongoing investigations by the US Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission and two state agencies in New York.

A spokesman for the social network said the company was cooperating with investigators in multiple federal probes, without addressing the grand jury inquiry specifically.

Facebook said on Thursday it had restored service to its main app and Instagram, after the world's largest social network suffered a major outage that frustrated users across the globe for about 24 hours.

Facebook said on Thursday it had restored service to its main app and Instagram, after the world's largest social network suffered a major outage that frustrated users across the globe for about 24 hours. The company also said it was considering whether to refund advertisers for lost exposure due to the problems, which internet outage trackers showed affected users in Europe, Japan, North and South America. "Yesterday, a server configuration issue made it difficult for people to access our apps and services. We are 100 per cent back up and running and apologize for any inconvenience," a Facebook spokesperson said. "We are still investigating the overall impact of this issue, including the possibility of refunds for advertisers." Facebook takes tens of millions of dollars of advertising revenue every day. Media reports earlier said millions of users were affected, and thousands took to Twitter on Wednesday and Thursday to complain under the hashtag #facebookdown. DownDetector website - one of the internet's most used sources of numbers on outages - showed the number of complaints had peaked at more than 12,000, gradually falling to about 180 as of 11 am ET on Thursday. The BBC and a handful of other media outlets said it was the platform's longest ever outage. Reuters was not immediately able to verify those claims and the company declined to comment beyond the statement on resumption of services. Facebook's shares fell nearly 2 per cent in morning trading on Thursday. INVESTIGATION Separately, the New York Times reported on Wednesday that US federal prosecutors were conducting a criminal investigation into data deals Facebook struck with more than 150 technology companies such as Amazon and Apple. Facebook is facing a slew of lawsuits and regulatory inquiries over its privacy practices, including ongoing investigations by the US Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission and two state agencies in New York. A spokesman for the social network said the company was cooperating with investigators in multiple federal probes, without addressing the grand jury inquiry specifically.

Facebook restores services after global outage

Facebook authorities said they were working to resolve the issue which led to the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-instagram-down-in-large-parts-of-the-the-world-203174">social networking site going down</a> across several regions on Wednesday.

In a tweet on Thursday, the social networking site assured that they were working to resolve the issue as soon as possible. It also added that the issue was not related to Denial of service attack(DDoS).

"We're focused on working to resolve the issue as soon as possible, but can confirm that the issue is not related to a DDoS attack," the statement said.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
We're focused on working to resolve the issue as soon as possible, but can confirm that the issue is not related to a DDoS attack.
— Facebook (@facebook) <a href="https://twitter.com/facebook/status/1105907126424109056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">×</a></div>

A DoS (denial-of-service) attack uses a single computer and internet connection to attack a target and shuts it down.&nbsp;A DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attack, on the other hand, uses several computers and internet connections to do the same thing.&nbsp;

A DoS attack is easier to fight back against since it would require the blocking of only one IP address.&nbsp;

Many users across the world found their&nbsp;Facebook and Instagram accounts&nbsp;going inactive for hours.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
We’re aware of an issue impacting people's access to Instagram right now. We know this is frustrating, and our team is hard at work to resolve this ASAP.
— Instagram (@instagram) <a href="https://twitter.com/instagram/status/1105956381998309376?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">×</a></div>

While&nbsp;numerous users said they were unable to access the site on mobile phones or computer screens, many others found it working on their phone.

Some users got a message on their&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-presidential-hopeful-warren-wants-breakup-of-google-facebook-and-amazon-202089">Facebook</a>&nbsp;screens saying the social networking site was down for maintenance purposes, but would be back up soon.&nbsp;

Others just came up against a blank page.&nbsp;

News reports said users were experiencing problems with their Facebook and Instagram in parts of US, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Mexico and in some parts of Europe.&nbsp;

The news reports also added that Google and Gmail had had issues too during the day.&nbsp;

Facebook authorities said they were working to resolve the issue which led to the social networking site going down across several regions on Wednesday. In a tweet on Thursday, the social networking site assured that they were working to resolve the issue as soon as possible.

Facebook authorities said they were working to resolve the issue which led to the social networking site going down across several regions on Wednesday. In a tweet on Thursday, the social networking site assured that they were working to resolve the issue as soon as possible. It also added that the issue was not related to Denial of service attack(DDoS). "We're focused on working to resolve the issue as soon as possible, but can confirm that the issue is not related to a DDoS attack," the statement said. We're focused on working to resolve the issue as soon as possible, but can confirm that the issue is not related to a DDoS attack. — Facebook (@facebook) March 13, 2019 × A DoS (denial-of-service) attack uses a single computer and internet connection to attack a target and shuts it down. A DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attack, on the other hand, uses several computers and internet connections to do the same thing. A DoS attack is easier to fight back against since it would require the blocking of only one IP address. Many users across the world found their Facebook and Instagram accounts going inactive for hours. We’re aware of an issue impacting people's access to Instagram right now. We know this is frustrating, and our team is hard at work to resolve this ASAP. — Instagram (@instagram) March 13, 2019 × While numerous users said they were unable to access the site on mobile phones or computer screens, many others found it working on their phone. Some users got a message on their Facebook screens saying the social networking site was down for maintenance purposes, but would be back up soon. Others just came up against a blank page. News reports said users were experiencing problems with their Facebook and Instagram in parts of US, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Mexico and in some parts of Europe. The news reports also added that Google and Gmail had had issues too during the day.

Issue not related to DDoS attack, says Facebook as site goes down

US federal prosecutors are conducting a criminal investigation into data deals<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-instagram-down-in-large-parts-of-the-the-world-203174"> Facebook Inc </a>struck with some of the world's largest technology companies, the New York Times reported on Wednesday.

A grand jury in New York has subpoenaed records from at least two prominent makers of smartphones and other devices, the newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the requests and without naming the companies.

Both companies are among the more than 150, including Amazon.com Inc, Apple Inc and Microsoft Corp, that have entered into partnerships with Facebook for access to the personal information of hundreds of millions of its users, according to the report.

Facebook is facing a slew of lawsuits and regulatory inquiries over its privacy practices, including ongoing investigations by the US Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission and two state agencies in New York.

In addition to looking at the data deals, the probes focus on disclosures that the company shared the user data of 87 million people with Cambridge Analytica, a British consulting firm that worked with US President Donald Trump's campaign.

Facebook said it was cooperating with investigators in multiple federal probes, without addressing the grand jury inquiry specifically.

"We've provided public testimony, answered questions, and pledged that we will continue to do so," Facebook said in a statement.

Facebook has defended the data-sharing deals, first reported in December, saying none of the partnerships gave companies access to information without people's permission.

A spokesman for the United States attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York, which The New York Times reported is overseeing the inquiry, said he could not confirm or deny the probe.

US federal prosecutors are conducting a criminal investigation into data deals Facebook Inc struck with some of the world's largest technology companies, the New York Times reported on Wednesday.

US federal prosecutors are conducting a criminal investigation into data deals Facebook Inc struck with some of the world's largest technology companies, the New York Times reported on Wednesday. A grand jury in New York has subpoenaed records from at least two prominent makers of smartphones and other devices, the newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the requests and without naming the companies. Both companies are among the more than 150, including Amazon.com Inc, Apple Inc and Microsoft Corp, that have entered into partnerships with Facebook for access to the personal information of hundreds of millions of its users, according to the report. Facebook is facing a slew of lawsuits and regulatory inquiries over its privacy practices, including ongoing investigations by the US Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission and two state agencies in New York. In addition to looking at the data deals, the probes focus on disclosures that the company shared the user data of 87 million people with Cambridge Analytica, a British consulting firm that worked with US President Donald Trump's campaign. Facebook said it was cooperating with investigators in multiple federal probes, without addressing the grand jury inquiry specifically. "We've provided public testimony, answered questions, and pledged that we will continue to do so," Facebook said in a statement. Facebook has defended the data-sharing deals, first reported in December, saying none of the partnerships gave companies access to information without people's permission. A spokesman for the United States attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York, which The New York Times reported is overseeing the inquiry, said he could not confirm or deny the probe.

US prosecutors probing Facebook's data deals: Report

Facebook and Instagram are down across large swathes of the world with numerous users saying neither would load on their mobile phones or computer screens.&nbsp;

Some users got a message on their <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-presidential-hopeful-warren-wants-breakup-of-google-facebook-and-amazon-202089">Facebook</a> screens saying the social networking site was down for maintenance purposes, but would be back up soon.&nbsp;

Others just came up against a blank page.&nbsp;

At WION's office in Noida one user came up against a blank Facebook page, while another got the "down for maintenance purposes" message.&nbsp;

Another user was able to open and access his Instagram on his desktop while yet another said it would not load on her mobile phone.&nbsp;

News reports meanwhile said users were experiencing problems with their Facebook and Instagram in at least the US, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Mexico and parts of Europe.&nbsp;

The reason for the disruption is not yet known.&nbsp;

That left Twitter, on which #instagramdown was trending Wednesday night and to which a number of users gravitated to report the problem:&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
me logging onto twitter to make sure instagram is down for other people and not just me <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/instagramdown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#instagramdown</a> <a href="https://t.co/mI2pnHE9wt">pic.twitter.com/mI2pnHE9wt</a>
— ♡ ava ♡ (@v2ncentvanhoe) <a href="https://twitter.com/v2ncentvanhoe/status/1105880989870579712?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
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Me waiting for Instagram to be fine again<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/instagramdown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#instagramdown</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Instagram?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Instagram</a> <a href="https://t.co/HwDwoTQXMv">pic.twitter.com/HwDwoTQXMv</a>
— Alex Quotes (@Alex_moods) <a href="https://twitter.com/Alex_moods/status/1105883668474523649?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
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People running from Instagram to twitter to see if other people are having the same problem <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Instagramdown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Instagramdown</a> <a href="https://t.co/hqPrjjE3aK">pic.twitter.com/hqPrjjE3aK</a>
— Jodie (@j0dieW) <a href="https://twitter.com/j0dieW/status/1105882011338768385?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
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The news reports added that Google and Gmail had had issues too during the day.&nbsp;

Facebook meanwhile also took to Twitter to say it was "working to resolve the issue as soon as possible".&nbsp;

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We’re aware that some people are currently having trouble accessing the Facebook family of apps. We’re working to resolve the issue as soon as possible.
— Facebook (@facebook) <a href="https://twitter.com/facebook/status/1105888649676111877?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
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"We're focused on working to resolve the issue as soon as possible, but can confirm that the issue is not related to a DDoS attack," it added.&nbsp;

A DoS (denial-of-service) attack uses a single computer and internet connection to attack a target and shut it down.&nbsp;A DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attack on the other hand uses several computers and internet connections to do the same thing.&nbsp;

A DoS attack is easier to fight back against since it would require the blocking of only one IP address.&nbsp;

Facebook and Instagram are down across large swathes of the world with numerous users saying neither would load on their mobile phones or computer screens. Some users got a message on their Facebook screens saying the social networking site was down for maintenance purposes, but would be back up soon.

Facebook and Instagram are down across large swathes of the world with numerous users saying neither would load on their mobile phones or computer screens. Some users got a message on their Facebook screens saying the social networking site was down for maintenance purposes, but would be back up soon. Others just came up against a blank page. At WION's office in Noida one user came up against a blank Facebook page, while another got the "down for maintenance purposes" message. Another user was able to open and access his Instagram on his desktop while yet another said it would not load on her mobile phone. News reports meanwhile said users were experiencing problems with their Facebook and Instagram in at least the US, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Mexico and parts of Europe. The reason for the disruption is not yet known. That left Twitter, on which #instagramdown was trending Wednesday night and to which a number of users gravitated to report the problem: me logging onto twitter to make sure instagram is down for other people and not just me #instagramdown pic.twitter.com/mI2pnHE9wt — ♡ ava ♡ (@v2ncentvanhoe) March 13, 2019 × Me waiting for Instagram to be fine again#instagramdown #Instagram pic.twitter.com/HwDwoTQXMv — Alex Quotes (@Alex_moods) March 13, 2019 × People running from Instagram to twitter to see if other people are having the same problem #Instagramdown pic.twitter.com/hqPrjjE3aK — Jodie (@j0dieW) March 13, 2019 × The news reports added that Google and Gmail had had issues too during the day. Facebook meanwhile also took to Twitter to say it was "working to resolve the issue as soon as possible". We’re aware that some people are currently having trouble accessing the Facebook family of apps. We’re working to resolve the issue as soon as possible. — Facebook (@facebook) March 13, 2019 × "We're focused on working to resolve the issue as soon as possible, but can confirm that the issue is not related to a DDoS attack," it added. A DoS (denial-of-service) attack uses a single computer and internet connection to attack a target and shut it down. A DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attack on the other hand uses several computers and internet connections to do the same thing. A DoS attack is easier to fight back against since it would require the blocking of only one IP address.

Facebook, Instagram down in large parts of the the world

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