Why Meta Swoops On Nigeria’s ‘Yahoo Boys,’ Deletes 63,000 Suspected Accounts

Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has announced the removal of 63,000 accounts linked to the infamous “Yahoo Boys” scam group.

This action was detailed in Meta’s Q1 2024 Adversarial Threat Report, released on Wednesday, July 24, 2024.

Over the past few weeks, these accounts were identified and deleted for their involvement in financial sextortion scams and the distribution of blackmail scripts.

A smaller network of 2,500 accounts, connected to about 20 individuals, primarily targeted adult men in the United States using fake identities.

Meta used a combination of advanced technical signals and comprehensive investigations to detect and disable these accounts, enhancing its automated detection systems.

“Financial sextortion is a borderless crime, fueled in recent years by the increased activity of Yahoo Boys, loosely organized cybercriminals operating largely out of Nigeria that specialize in different types of scams,” stated Meta.

In addition to the 63,000 accounts in Nigeria attempting to target people with financial sextortion scams, Meta removed a coordinated network of 2,500 accounts.

It also took down Facebook accounts, Pages, and groups run by Yahoo Boys that were banned under the Dangerous Organizations and Individuals policy, as they were attempting to organize, recruit, and train new scammers.

During the investigation, Meta discovered that while most scammers’ attempts were unsuccessful, some targeted minors.

These cases were reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). Meta also shared information with other tech companies via the Tech Coalition’s Lantern programme to help curb these scams across platforms.

Additionally, Meta removed approximately 7,200 assets in Nigeria, including 1,300 Facebook accounts, 200 pages, and 5,700 groups that were providing scam-related resources.

These assets were found offering scripts and guides for scams and sharing links to collections of photos for creating fake accounts.

Meta’s systems have been actively blocking attempts from these groups to return, continually improving detection capabilities.

The company is also working closely with law enforcement, supporting investigations and prosecutions by responding to legal requests and alerting authorities to imminent threats.

Meta’s efforts extend beyond account removal. “We also fund and support NCMEC and the International Justice Mission to run Project Boost, a program that trains law enforcement agencies around the world in processing and acting on NCMEC reports.

“We’ve conducted several training sessions so far, including in Nigeria and the Cote d’Ivoire, with our most recent session taking place just last month,” Meta revealed.

To protect users, especially teens, Meta has implemented stricter messaging settings for users under 16 (under 18 in certain countries) and displays safety notices to encourage cautious behavior online.

Last week, Meta was fined $220 million by Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission for multiple violations of data protection laws linked to WhatsApp.

The investigation, initiated in May 2021, found that Meta’s privacy policies infringed on users’ rights, including unauthorized data sharing and discriminatory practices.

Meta plans to appeal the decision, arguing that it disagrees with the findings and the imposed penalty.

The FCCPC aims to ensure fair treatment of Nigerian users and compliance with local regulations.