Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram, has announced the removal of 63,000 accounts connected to ‘Yahoo Boys’, that were attempting to target users in the United States.
The accounts, deleted over the past few weeks, were used for financial sextortion scams and distributing blackmail scripts.
In a statement, Meta said a smaller network of 2,500 accounts, linked to around 20 individuals, primarily targeted adult men in the United States using fake identities.
The social media giant said it identified and disabled these accounts through a combination of advanced technical signals and comprehensive investigations, enhancing its automated detection systems.
The company said: “Financial sextortion is a borderless crime, fueled in recent years by the increased activity of Yahoo Boys, loosely organised cybercriminals operating largely out of Nigeria that specialize in different types of scams
“We’ve removed around 63,000 accounts in Nigeria attempting to target people with financial sextortion scams, including a coordinated network of around 2,500 accounts.
“We’ve also removed a set of Facebook accounts, Pages, and groups run by Yahoo Boys—banned under our Dangerous Organizations and Individuals policy—that were attempting to organize, recruit and train new scammers.”
Meta said during the investigation it found that most scammers’ attempts were unsuccessful, though some had targeted minors.
Furthermore, Facebook said it removed around 7,200 assets in Nigeria, including 1,300 Facebook accounts, 200 pages, and 5,700 groups that were providing scam-related resources.
Last week, the Nigerian government through the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) fined Meta $220m.
Briefing newmen in Abuja, acting Executive Vice Chairman of FCCPC, Dr. Adamu Abdullahi, said the company was fined after a three-year investigation showed that the company violated consumers’ rights and data privacy.
Abdullahi said: “When you want to register a new WhatsApp, Meta has already made the conditions compulsory for Nigerians to agree to its data privacy specifications as against the Yes or No option provided in Europe and other countries, which was why we fined them $220m.
“Subsequently, they shared the data of Nigerians across different platforms which violated the Data Protection Act of Nigeria; that was why we fined them. We are also proud to say that we are one of the first institutions in Africa to stand against these multinationals and ensure they do the right thing.”
Asked about the previous fine on British American Tobacco, he said, “The company paid the money to the federal government, partly in January, 2023, and completed it in March, 2023, through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).”