Google locks Afghanistan govt's accounts to stop Taliban using digital trail: Reports

As the Taliban took after Afghanistan, the global news reports informed that the Google has temporarily locked down an unspecified number of Afghan government email accouts. The reports also highlighted that how there is a possibility of biometric and Afghan payroll databases being exploited by the new rulers to hunt their enemies. 

Facebook rolls out new security policies for Afghanistan

Earlier in August, social media giant Facebook's (FB) head of security policy Nathaniel Gleicher had said that like many others, FB users have been watching tragic events unfolding in Afghanistan. While stating that his thoughts go out to everyone on the ground and everyone trying to help these events unfold, he had said that Facebook has rolled out a few security measures for people in the war-torn nation to protect their accounts. 

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

The Facebook security head had also 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. 

Taliban spokesman accuses FB of censorship for banning terror group

Earlier, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Majahid had hit out at Facebook for demeaning the Islamic group's "right to freedom of speech". He had assued the social media platform of banning Taliban from a public platform. He had also lashed out at Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and said that "people who claim to be promoter of free speech" have now removed user accounts linked to the Taliban, after it seized power in Afghanistan. 

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