Facebook issues safety guidelines to Afghanistan people using its social media platform

As the Taliban takes complete control of Afghanistan, Facebook (FB) head of security policy Nathaniel Gleicher on Friday said that like many others, FB users have been watching the tragic events unfolding in the war-torn nation. While stating that his thoughts go out to everyone on the ground and everyone trying to help these events unfold, Nathaniel Gleicher said that Facebook has rolled out a few security measures for people in Afghanistan to protect their accounts. 

Facebook rolls out new security policies for Afghanistan

Facebook head of security said, "Over the past week, Facebook teams have been working round the clock to do everything we can to help keep people safe."

Informing that Facebook has launched a one-click tool for people in Afghanistan to quickly lock down their account, he said, "When their profile is locked, people who aren't their friends can't download or share their profile photo or see posts on their timeline."

Giving our further details, Gleicher said that Facebook is rolling out pop-up alerts on Instagram in Afghanistan with specific steps on how one can protect his/her account.

"We also temporarily removed the ability to view and search the “Friends” list for Facebook accounts in Afghanistan to help protect people from being targeted," he added. 

The Facebook security head said that it's important for journalists and activists in Afghanistan to remember that FB is only one piece of the online environment. Useful cybersecurity toolkit for journalists have also been launched, he added. 

Facebook security head said,

"We’re working closely with our counterparts in industry, civil society and government to provide whatever support we can to help protect people. And we've stood up a special operations centre to respond to new threats as they emerge. We know that no single step is enough by itself in crises like this, but we’re watching closely as the situation develops and will take steps to help protect people in real-time."

Taliban spokesman accuses FB of censorship for banning terror group

Earlier on Tuesday, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid ranted about Facebook demeaning the Islamic group’s “right to freedom of speech” as he accused the social media giant of banning them from the public platform.

Speaking to the reporters at the Afghan capital, Kabul, the Taliban spokesperson lashed out at Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg saying that the “people that claim to be promoters of free speech” have removed user accounts linked to him after the Islamic movement seized power in the Middle East country. 

Mujahid complained about not being able to post on Facebook as he questioned the tech company's decision to ban Taliban across social media. He complained that the group could not share anything on Facebook-owned platforms such as Instagram and WhatsApp. 

The Talibani spokesperson kept lambasting the tech giant as he held a conference at the Afghan government press centre, positioned in the seat previously held by Dawa Khan Meenapal, a spokesman for the Afghan government whom they assassinated last week.

In its response to the complaint made by the Taliban spokesperson, Facebook spokesperson, who declined to make personal comments, issued an official statement on behalf of the company.

“The Taliban is sanctioned as a terrorist organisation under US law and they are banned from our services under our Dangerous Organisation policies. This means we remove accounts maintained by or on behalf of the Taliban and prohibit praise, support, and representation of them,” the statement, obtained by multiple broadcasters read. 

Elaborating on the curbs imposed on the Taliban across Facebook, the company said that it had a dedicated team of Afghanistan experts, who are native speakers of Dari and Pashto. These members were aware of the nature of the content being shared on the platform and have knowledge of local context, adding that content regulation lawfully adheres to the platform.

(Image: AP, Pixabay)