Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, announced on Wednesday that it has removed 63,000 accounts connected to Nigerian cybercriminals involved in financial sextortion scams targeting users in the United States.
In its Q1 2024 Adversarial Threat Report, Meta detailed that the takedown included a smaller coordinated network of about 2,500 accounts linked to a group of roughly 20 individuals.
“These accounts primarily targeted adult men in the U.S., using fake profiles to conceal their identities,” Meta reported.
Meta utilized advanced technical signals and comprehensive investigations to identify and disable these accounts, thereby enhancing its automated detection systems.
“Financial sextortion is a global crime, driven in recent years by increased activity from Yahoo Boys—loosely organized cybercriminals operating mainly from Nigeria and specializing in various scams.
“We have removed around 63,000 accounts in Nigeria attempting financial sextortion, including a coordinated network of approximately 2,500 accounts,” Meta stated.
The company also dismantled a set of Facebook accounts, pages, and groups managed by Yahoo Boys, which were banned under its Dangerous Organizations and Individuals policy for attempting to organize, recruit, and train new scammers.
Antigone Davis, Meta’s global head of safety, explained that while most scam attempts targeted adults and were unsuccessful, some involved minors, which were reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC).
“While most of these scammers’ attempts were unsuccessful and primarily targeted adults, we did identify some attempts involving minors,” Davis said.
Additionally, Meta announced the removal of about 7,200 assets in Nigeria, which included 1,300 Facebook accounts, 200 pages, and 5,700 groups involved in sharing scam-related resources.
These assets were found to be offering scripts and guides for scams and sharing links to photo collections used to create fake accounts.
“These efforts included selling scripts and guides for scams and sharing links to photo collections for fake accounts,” Meta explained.
The social media company noted that its efforts go beyond account removal. Meta is working closely with law enforcement, supporting investigations and prosecutions by responding to legal requests and alerting authorities to imminent threats.
“We also support and fund NCMEC and the International Justice Mission to operate Project Boost, a program training law enforcement agencies worldwide in processing and acting on NCMEC reports. We’ve conducted several training sessions, including in Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire, with our most recent session occurring just last month,” it added.