Social media platform Facebook has been activated again after a temporary server error. Facebook, Messenger and Instagram were restored after being shut down for about an hour. Earlier, there was a sudden outage on Facebook after 9 pm. At the same time, Instagram was not working. "There were more than 3,00,000 reports of outages for Facebook, while there were more than 20,000 reports for Instagram," according to Downdetector.com.  "We're aware people are having trouble accessing our services. We are working on this now," Meta spokesperson Andy Stone stated in a post on X social media.

Social media platform Facebook has suddenly become inactive. Users in Bangladesh are not able to log in to Facebook. Even the IDs that are active on Facebook are automatically logged out. Users have been reporting the problem since 9 pm Bangladesh time on Tuesday (March 5). According to some sources, due to technological default in Meta the service of Facebook, Instragram and Messenger are currently unavailable all over the world.     

A Kenyan judge has ruled that Meta is not in contempt of court for failing to pay dozens of Facebook content moderators, who had been laid off by a contractor. Facebook's parent company Meta is not in contempt of court for not paying dozens of content moderators who were laid off by the subcontractor, Sama. The ruling comes after scores of content moderators had been made redundant by Sama, a Facebook contractor, in March this year. A number of them subsequently filed a lawsuit suing Meta, Sama and other contractors for unfair dismissal. Negotiations for the parties involved to pursue an out-of-court settlement through mediation then collapsed in October after the moderators who had brought the lawsuit dismissed an offer saying it was too low.   'No deliberate contempt' In his decision, judge Mathews Nduma Nderi said on Thursday that the US tech giant had not "deliberately and contemptuously" breached a court order still requiring Meta to pay wages to the moderators. "They did various things which they thought were lawful in trying to deal with their situation, but we did not find that what they did amounted to contempt," Nderi said. The contempt of court application against Meta and its contractors was lodged after in an earlier ruling, a different judge had banned Meta from laying off the workers while a decision on their case was still pending. However, the content moderators said they hadn't been paid during this period as the court had ruled they should be, resulting in a contempt case being lodged.   Original lawsuit over unfair dismissal US-based sub-contractor Sama was first hired by Facebook to moderate its content in east and southern Africa in 2019. In March 2023, Sama decided to withdraw from the content moderation business for what it said were economic reasons, which resulted in mass terminations, mainly affecting its hub in Kenya's capital, Nairobi. However, the sacked content moderators believe they were fired because of attempts to unionize as well as due to complaints over working conditions and a lack of mental health support. They say they also were blocked from applying for jobs at a second subcontractor, Luxembourg-based Majorel, which later was awarded the African content moderation contract by Facebook after its withdrawal from Sama. Thursday's ruling meanwhile does not signal an end coming to the highly publicized lawsuit. The legal counsel representing the content moderators now has 45 days to amend its contempt of court petition.   Lawsuit ongoing The judge also highlighted that unless the matter was resolved out of court, the case would be given priority for the court to determine its merits. After Thursday's ruling, British tech rights group Foxglove, which is supporting the plaintiffs, said it was still eager to bring the ongoing case to trial. "We remain confident of our case overall, as we have prevailed on every substantive point so far," Foxglove director Martha Dark told the Reuters news agency, adding: "The most important ruling remains the one we won in June; Meta can no longer hide behind outsourcers to excuse the exploitation and abuse of its content moderators." In early June, Kenya's employment court had ruled that Meta was still the "principal" employer of the outsourced content moderators working in the Nairobi hub, and that therefore it could be held liable under Kenyan law, especially since their work tasks were carried out using Meta's own proprietary technology, while also adhering to the tech giant's performance and accuracy metrics.   Significant trauma As part of a broader interim decision, the court ruling in June also resulted in Meta being ordered to "provide proper medical, psychiatric and psychological care" to the moderators, as their jobs entailed screening content uploaded by users and removing any uploads deemed to be in breach of Facebook's community standards. This exposed them to disturbing images, including rape, murder, suicide and self-harm. the moderators said they were traumatized by viewing this endless streams of highly graphic content. "The reason we don't see videos of beheadings and sexual violence on Facebook is because there are content moderators on the front line, constantly consuming this content, reviewing it and taking it down before you and I have a chance to look at it," lawyer Mercy Mutemi, who represents 43 of the plaintiffs, said after Thursday's ruling. "Facebook and Sama lure young, promising yet vulnerable, and unsuspecting youth from Kenya and other African countries," she told DW. Earlier this month, DW spoke to a young woman from Ethiopia, who had worked as a content moderator for Facebook in Nairobi. Requested to remain anonymous, she said: "All you see is manslaughter, dismembered bodies or people being burnt alive, there's no warning. "And once you see it, you can't unsee it." More legal troubles for Meta in Kenya Meta, which also owns WhatsApp and Instagram, meanwhile faces another two lawsuits in Kenya alone: Another former content moderator is suing Sama and Facebook in Kenya for a raft of alleged rights violations, including exploitation and union-busting. In the lawsuit lodged in 2022, Daniel Motaung claims he was paid as little as $2.20 (€2.04) an hour to view posts that included beheadings and child abuse, affecting his long-term mental health.  Furthermore, a local NGO lodged a $1.6 billion lawsuit alongside two Ethiopian citizens, accusing Meta of inflaming the civil war in Ethiopia due to its alleged failure to remove hate speech on Facebook. Despite mounting legal troubles, East Africa continues to witness growing interest from international tech firms, which often use third-party outsourcing companies. With its young and tech-savvy English speakers, stable internet connection and a similiar time zone to much of Europe, countries like Kenza and Ethiopia are becoming increasingly attractive for conglomerates like Meta and its subsidiaries. However, low pay rates and insecure employment contracts, coupled with this exposure to graphic content, raise questions about the exploitative conditions that content moderators often have to work under.

Meta on Thursday (Nov 30) warned that deceptive online campaigns based in China were taking aim at 2024 elections in the United States and elsewhere. The tech giant behind Facebook and Instagram said it has taken down five coordinated influence networks out of China this year. "Foreign threat actors are attempting to reach people across the Internet ahead of next year's elections, and we need to remain alert," Meta global threat intelligence lead Ben Nimmo said during a briefing about its latest security report. Meta said that it removed 4,789 Facebook fake accounts that were part of one campaign posting about national politics and relations with China. The accounts in the network praised China; bashed its critics, and copy-pasted real online posts by US politicians with the potential to stoke partisan divisions, according to the threat report. "As election campaigns ramp up, we should expect foreign influence operations to try and leverage authentic parties and debate rather than creating original content themselves," Nimmo said. "We anticipate that if relations with China become an election topic in a particular country, we may see China-based influence operations pivot to target those debates." Meta tracked the source of the networks to China but did not attribute them to the government. The most prolific source of such networks continues to be Russia, with operations based in that country focusing primarily on undermining support for its war against Ukraine, according to Meta. Websites associated with Russia-based campaigns recently shifted to using the war between Hamas and Israel to tarnish the image of the United States, the security report indicated. Source: CNA

The social media giant is making another round of mass layoffs as it seeks to reduce costs. The company has sunk billions into its metaverse venture. Facebook parent Meta is cutting another 10,000 jobs, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced in an email to employees on Tuesday. Another 5,000 open positions would also remain unfilled, the tech giant said. The mass axing of staff comes after a previous round of cuts that saw 11,000 jobs culled in November. Zuckerberg called 2023 a "year of efficiency," saying Meta was planning on reducing costs by about $5 billion (€4.67 billion), down to $89-$95 billion. What did Mark Zuckerberg say about the job cuts? "This will be tough, and there's no way around that," Zuckerberg said. "It will mean saying goodbye to talented and passionate colleagues who have been part of our success." "As I've talked about efficiency this year, I've said that part of our work will involve removing jobs — and that will be in service of both building a leaner, more technical company and improving our business performance to enable our long-term vision," he added. The job cuts will first target Meta's recruitment team, with further cuts hitting the company's tech groups in late April and its business groups in late May. Meta shares rose by 6% in early trading as news of the cuts was made public. Tech companies cutting back across the board The Meta company — which owns social media platforms Facebook and Instagram as well as messenger service WhatsApp — has invested billions in shifting its efforts toward developing an online platform that takes advantage of 3D technology. But the project has become an investment sink, with billions already having been lost on the venture. In February, Meta posted lower fourth-quarter profit and revenue, sparked by a downturn in the online advertising market and competition from rivals including TikTok. Meta is not the only major US tech company to be cutting back on jobs. Rival social media platform Twitter has also made considerable cutbacks following the takeover by billionaire Elon Musk. Online retail giant Amazon also put construction of its second headquarters in Virginia on hold last month after the biggest round of layoffs in the company's history. The vast job cuts in the tech industry come after many companies bloated their payrolls during the coronavirus pandemic to meet the sudden surge in demand for online services.

The former US president had been blocked from the social media platforms since the January 6, 2021 insurrection. Meta said it was taking measures to prevent "repeat offenders" from violating its rules. Facebook parent company, Meta, announced on Wednesday that it would restore former US President Donald Trump's accounts on its platforms "in the coming weeks" after a two-year ban.  The company said it was adding "new guardrails" to ensure there are no "repeat offenders" who break its rules. Nick Clegg, Meta's president of global affairs, wrote in a blog post on Wednesday, "In the event that Mr. Trump posts further violating content, the content will be removed and he will be suspended for between one month and two years, depending on the severity of the violation." Why was Trump banned? Shortly after his supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, Trump's accounts were banned or suspended by social media platforms for violating their rules. At the time, Twitter said two of his tweets violated the company's policies against what it calls the glorification of violence.  Facebook, Instagram and YouTube suspended Trump's accounts amid fears that he might use social media to incite more unrest. Meta's move came after Twitter reinstated the former president's account last November. CEO Elon Musk had posted a poll asking the social media platform should allow Trump back, and his account reappeared after the narrow vote. Trump reacts In a post on his own social media network Truth Social, Trump said such a ban "should never again happen to a sitting President."  Trump's Facebook ban, which came into effect a day after the deadly insurrection, was the first time the company ever blocked the account of a sitting head of state for violating its content rules. The restoration of his social media accounts comes as Trump, who is facing criminal probes by the Justice Department, seeks another run for the White House in 2024. Facebook and Instagram have been key platforms for online political outreach and fundraising.  Trump said after he was reinstated on Twitter that he was in talks with Meta about returning.

The lawsuit relates to a 2018 scandal regarding British consulting company Cambridge Analytica. The company acquired private information from Facebook users to impact the results of the 2016 US presidential election. Facebook parent company Meta Platforms has agreed to pay $725 million (€682 million) in settlement in a lawsuit seeking damages for allowing third parties, including British consulting firm Cambridge Analytica, access to user data. The proposed settlement was disclosed in a court filing late on Thursday. It still awaits the San Francisco Court's approval. If or when approved, it could give closure to one of Facebook's longest-standing privacy breach scandals. Why is the settlement significant? Lawyers for the plaintiffs hailed the proposed settlement as the largest ever in a US data privacy class action, as well as the most Meta will have ever paid to resolve a class action lawsuit. "This historic settlement will provide meaningful relief to the class in this complex and novel privacy case," the Reuters news agency quoted the lead lawyers for the plaintiffs, Derek Loeser and Lesley Weaver, as saying in a joint statement. Meta has yet to admit wrongdoing. However, the company said in a statement that the settlement was "in the best interest of our community and shareholders." It added that since then, Meta has "revamped our approach to privacy and implemented a comprehensive privacy program." The company had agreed to the settlement in August. Yet, at the time, no details were announced, including on the sum agreed. What is the case about? In 2018, it came to light that Cambridge Analytica had paid a Facebook app developer for access to the personal data of some 87 millions of Facebook users. The data was used to target voters during the 2016 US presidential election in favor of Republican candidate Donald Trump, who ended up winning the vote. The information was obtained without the users' consent. Cambridge Analytica is now defunct. Following the revelations, Facebook founder and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg submitted to an excruciating congressional hearing on the data sharing scandal. The lawsuit maintains that the breach in privacy shows that Facebook is a "data broker and surveillance firm" and not just a social network. The reached settlement covers some 250 to 280 million Facebook users. The lawyers are claiming up to 25% of the settlement. The individual users' shares will however depend on how many of them file valid claims for a share of the settlement.

Facebook changed its parent company name to "Meta" on Thursday as the tech giant tries to move past being a scandal-plagued social network to its virtual reality vision for the future.    The new handle comes as the company battles to fend off one of its worst crises yet and pivot to its ambitions for the "metaverse," which would blur the lines between the physical world and the digital one.    Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp -- which are used by billions around the world -- will keep their names under the rebranding critics have called an effort to distract from the platform's dysfunction.    "We've learned a lot from struggling with social issues and living under closed platforms, and now it is time to take everything that we've learned and help build the next chapter," CEO Mark Zuckerberg said during an annual developers conference.    "I am proud to announce that starting today, our company is now Meta. Our mission remains the same, still about bringing people together, our apps and their brands, they're not changing," he added.    The company's critics pounced on the rebranding, with an activist group calling itself The Real Facebook Oversight Board saying the platform is harming democracy while spreading disinformation and hate.    "Their meaningless name change should not distract from the investigation, regulation and real, independent oversight needed to hold Facebook accountable," the group said in a statement.    The social media giant has been battling one of its most serious crises ever since former employee Frances Haugen leaked reams of internal studies showing executives knew of their sites' potential for harm, prompting a renewed US push for regulation.    - 'Metaverse' -    Reports from a consortium of US news outlets have used those documents to produce a deluge of damning stories, including blaming Zuckerberg for his platform bending to state censors and highlighting how the site has stoked anger in the name of keeping users engaged.    Facebook noted in a filing that from September "it became subject to government investigations and requests" relating to the documents leaked to lawmakers and regulators.    The company told AFP it issued on Tuesday to employees a "legal hold," which is an instruction to preserve documents and communications because it faces inquiries from authorities.    A Washington Post report last month suggested that Facebook's interest in a metaverse virtual world is "part of a broader push to rehabilitate the company's reputation with policymakers and reposition Facebook to shape the regulation of next-wave internet technologies."    However Zuckerberg, in a more than one-hour streamed message that showed him exploring virtual reality worlds, said the vision is the future.    "Within the next decade, Metaverse will reach a billion people, post hundreds of billions of dollars of digital commerce, and support jobs for millions of creators and developers," he said.    The company noted during Zuckerberg's presentation "a dozen major technological breakthroughs to get to the next generation metaverse."    Facebook has just announced plans to hire 10,000 people in the European Union to build the "metaverse," with Zuckerberg emerging as a leading promoter of the concept.    The metaverse is, in fact, the stuff of science-fiction: the term was coined by Neal Stephenson in his 1992 novel "Snow Crash," in which people don virtual reality headsets to interact inside a game-like digital world.    Facebook has been hit by major crises previously, but the current view behind the curtain of the insular company has fueled a frenzy of scathing reports and scrutiny from US regulators.    "Good faith criticism helps us get better, but my view is that what we are seeing is a coordinated effort to selectively use leaked documents to paint a false picture of our company," Zuckerberg said in an earnings call on Monday.    Google rebranded itself as Alphabet in a corporate reconfiguration in 2015, but the online search and ad powerhouse remains its defining unit despite other operations such as Waymo self-driving cars and Verily life sciences. Source: AFP/BSS AH

The person who reportedly hacked the Facebook account of Biplob Chandra has been identified with the assistance of Facebook authorities. Quoting Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, Public Relations Officer of the Home Ministry Sharif Mahmud told UNB on Thursday that the Facebook authorities on Wednesday confirmed the identity of the hacker. “Soon the person’s identity will be disclosed before the media. We’re trying to arrest the person shortly,” the Home Minister was quoted as saying. Four people were killed and more than 200 others were injured on Sunday in a clash between police and demonstrating locals in Borhanuddin upazila, demanding the punishment of a youth for allegedly hurting religious sentiments on Facebook. Police and locals said messages containing derogatory remarks about Allah and Prophet Muhammad (SM) were sent to several people from the Facebook ID of Biplob Chandra Shuvo. The screenshots of the messages went viral on Facebook, triggering condemnations and protests. Md Enamul Haque, officer-in-charge of Borhanuddin Police Station, said Biplob came to them on Saturday to file a general diary claiming that his Facebook account had been hacked. Later, two suspected hackers were detained. Source: UNB AH

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of private television channel ‘Rtv’ and Chief Editor of ‘Rtv online’ Syed Ashik Rahman’s verified facebook id was hacked again. His id is- https://www.facebook.com/ashik.rahman.0097 He is at present available in United States of America. His verified facebook id was hacked on Saturday (April 13) in the afternoon local time. Expressing anger from there he said, such verified facebook id is hacked again? It is very sad. Some miscreants who want to hurt personal dignity have hacked the facebook id. I am seeking attention of concerned personnel to take necessary action under Information and Communication Technology act. Screenshot of General Diary After the hacking phone calls are being made to different persons. For this reason he requested all for not sharing any information and for not doing any financial transaction after getting phone call or message from this id. After the incident, on the following day (April 14) a General Diary (GD) was filed with Tejgaon police station, GD number-748. Besides, in a letter of acknowledgement the matter was informed to Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) on April 16.   Scanned copy of acknowledgement letter submitted to BTRC Earlier, on September 19 Syed Ashik Rahman’s verified facebook id was hacked while he was visiting China. AH