Papua New Guinea is banning Facebook for one month in order to research the social network’s effects on the population and to crack down on fake accounts.
Sam Basil, the country’s communication minister, said that the one-month ban will allow his agency to “filter” fake accounts and pornography from the website.
“The time will allow information to be collected to identify users that hide behind fake accounts, users that upload pornographic images, users that post false and misleading information on Facebook to be filtered and removed,” he told the Post Courier newspaper in Papua New Guinea, according to The Guardian. “This will allow genuine people with real identities to use the social network responsibly.”
The move comes as Facebook is facing criticism from users and lawmakers worldwide over its handling of user data, including a revelation that political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica had improperly obtained data on at least 87 million Facebook users.
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