Meta, the parent company of Facebook, has announced the deactivation of approximately 63,000 Nigerian Facebook accounts involved in financial sexual extortion scams.
The accounts, which primarily targeted adult men in the United States, were part of a coordinated effort to exploit users through a practice known as “sextortion.”
Meta revealed in a statement on Wednesday that the takedown included “a smaller coordinated network of around 2,500 that were linked to a group of around 20 individuals.” The company emphasized the deceptive nature of these operations, stating, “They targeted primarily adult men in the U.S. and used fake accounts to mask their identities.”
This crackdown sheds light on the persistent issue of online fraud originating from Nigeria, where scammers, colloquially known as ‘Yahoo Boys’, are infamous for various schemes. These range from impersonating individuals in financial distress to posing as Nigerian princes offering lucrative investment opportunities, or even creating fake romantic profiles to lure unsuspecting foreigners.
“Sextortion,” the primary focus of this particular network, involves threatening victims with the release of compromising photos or videos, whether real or fabricated, unless a ransom is paid.
Meta’s investigation revealed that while the majority of the scammers’ attempts were unsuccessful, there were concerning instances involving minors.
“Although mostly targeting adults, there were also attempts against minors, which Meta reported to the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children in the United States,” the company stated.
