Facebook expects to see “bad actors” trying to interfere with the 2018 U.S. midterm elections, but it stopped short of saying whether it’s found malicious activity already.
The company held a conference call on Tuesday with reporters regarding its policies to improve political advertising, lessen fake news and other initiatives ahead of election season.
When reportes asked if there was any indication Russians or other groups were planning an attack to sway the midterm elections, Facebook said it thought “bad actors” would try to use the platform for this purpose. It said it was monitoring for malicious activity, and would notify the proper authorities if anything was spotted.
However despite repeated questions, the company would not confirm or denywhether it had already found suspicious behavior, only noting that giving guidance could interfere with internal or governmental investigations.
The company also reiterated its policy to reduce the frequency of misinformation on its platform instead of removing it, which has gained prominence in recent days as some onlookers have questioned the decision to allow conspiracy theory media outlet Infowars to continue to post false content.
News Feed product manager Tessa Lyons explained while it allows posts that do not violate policies even if it is misinformation, it “doesn’t mean they should get distribution.” People who share fake news will receive a notification the item has been flagged as untrue, as well as a notice if Facebook determines at a later time the information is false. However, the company reserves the right to take down posts if are intended to incite violence.
