ThisFrenchdoctor, frustrated by unvaccinated COVID-19 patients showing up at the hospital, logged intoFacebook and uploaded a video calling out to people. Get vaccinated.
He was soon swarmed with dozens, hundreds and over a thousand hateful messages from the anti-vaccine extremist group known as V_V. The group operates in France and Italy, harassing doctors and public health officials, subverting government agencies, and attempting to disrupt vaccine clinics.
Facebook, alarmed by the abuse of its platform, suspended several accounts associated with the group last December. However, V_V continued to use Facebook and other platforms and, like many anti-vaccine groups around the world, expanded its portfolio to include climate change denial and anti-democratic messages.
"Let's take them home. They don't need to sleep anymore," reads one of his posts in the group. "Fight us." Reads another.
The largely unchecked nature of attacks on the uncontroversial health benefits of vaccines makes social media companies vulnerable to even the most devastating kinds of misinformation, especially on an ongoing basis. It highlights clear limits that cannot be stopped without active effort.
Researchers at Reset, a UK-based nonprofit, have identified more than 15,000 Facebook posts by V_V of him containing abusive or misleading information. The activity peaked in spring 2022, months after the platform announced its action against the organization. In a report on V_V activity, Reset researchers concluded that their continued presence on Facebook raises "questions about the efficacy and consistency of Meta's self-reported interventions."
Facebook parent company Metasays 2021 action was not intended to remove all of his V_V content, participating in systematic harassment I replied that it was intended to delete the account that was found to be. The Associated Press said it had removed 100 more accounts this week after notifying Facebook of the group's continued activity on its platform. It said it was trying to strike a balance between removing content that clearly violates its rules against dangerous misinformation and silencing innocent users. problems can be particularly difficult.
"This is a highly hostile space and our work is ongoing. Since its initial removal, we have taken many steps against attempts to revive this network." a Meta spokesperson told AP that
V_V is also active on Twitterand Reset researchers have linked hundreds of accounts for the group. and found thousands of posts. Reset found that many of the accounts were created shortly after Facebook took action against the program last winter.
Following Reset's report, Twitter said it had taken enforcement action against multiple accounts linked to V_V, but did not provide details of those actions.
V_V has proven particularly resilient to attempts to thwart it. Named after the movie V for Vendetta, the group is about a lone masked man seeking revenge on an authoritarian government, using fake accounts to evade detection and steal Facebook accounts. It often coordinates messages and activities on platforms such as Telegram that are lacking in its more aggressive platforms. Moderation policy.
According to Jack Stubbs, a researcher at Graphika, a data analytics firm that tracks V_V activity, his adaptability is one reason the group is so difficult to stop.
"They understand how the Internet works," Stubbs said.
Graphika estimated that the group will have 20,000 members in late 2021, but the core of members involved in online harassment efforts was small. In addition to Italy and France, Graphika's team found evidence of V_V's attempt to establish chapters in Spain, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Brazil, and Germany, where a similar rebel movement known as Querdenken was active.
Groups and movements such as V_V and Querdenken say there is evidence that far-right groups are using his COVID-19 and vaccine skepticism to expand their reach with law enforcement and We are increasingly wary of extremist researchers.
Such groups are increasingly moving from online harassment to real-world behavior.
For example, in April he used his Telegram to spray paint the group's symbol (his two red Vs in a circle) on public buildings and vaccine clinics. To the vandal he announced plans to pay a bounty of €10,000. The group then used Telegram to spread pictures of the vandalism.
A month before Facebook took action against V_V, Italian police raided 17 of his anti-vaccine activists. They used Telegram to intimidate government, medical and media personnel perceived to support COVID-19 restrictions.
Social media companies have struggled to keep up with a wave of vaccine misinformation since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier this week, Facebook and Instagram suspended the Children's Health Defense, a leading anti-vaccine organization headed by Robert Kennedy Jr.
Joshua Tucker said one reason was because of harmful content. It's a delicate balance between moderation and protecting free expression. He is co-head of NYU's Social Media and Political Center and a senior advisor to him at Kroll, a technology, government, and economic consulting firm.
Striking the right balance is especially important as social media has emerged as an important source of global news and information. Leaving too much inappropriate content can mislead users. Removing too much will make users mistrust the platform.
"It's dangerous for society to move in a direction where no one feels they can trust information," Tucker said.