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Fb proprietor Meta Platforms mentioned on Thursday it had eliminated a community of social media accounts with ties to the Brazilian navy that posed as pretend nonprofits to minimize the hazards of deforestation. The feedback by Meta, revealed in a quarterly report, pose a reputational threat to Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro. The far-right former military captain, a longtime skeptic of environmentalism, has deployed the armed forces to the Amazon on unsuccessful missions to scale back destruction of the world’s largest rainforest.
Though the people concerned within the community had been lively navy personnel, Meta’s investigation didn’t discover sufficient proof to determine in the event that they had been following orders or appearing independently, in keeping with an individual with data of the matter.
The takedown operation, Meta’s first to hit a community centered totally on environmental points, might also add fireplace to Bolsonaro’s assaults on massive tech companies, which he accuses of stifling conservative voices on their platforms.
Critics say Bolsonaro and his supporters use the platforms to unfold harmful disinformation undermining Brazil’s democratic establishments.
In its report, Meta mentioned the unidentified community, which was restricted in scale and genuine engagement, used pretend accounts on Fb and Instagram to put up initially about land reform and the pandemic in 2020 earlier than turning its focus to environmental points final yr.
“In 2021, they created Pages that posed as fictitious NGOs and activists centered on environmental points within the Amazonas area of Brazil. They posted about deforestation, together with arguing that not all of it’s dangerous, and criticizing reliable environmental NGOs who spoke out in opposition to deforestation within the Amazon,” Meta mentioned in its report.
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“Though the folks behind (the community) tried to hide their identities and coordination, our investigation discovered hyperlinks to people related to the Brazilian Army.”
Meta declined to supply further details about its investigation.
Bolsonaro’s workplace and the Protection Ministry didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark.
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