Russians bought US election Facebook ads

A GROUP based in Russia spent at least $100,000 on Facebook adverts in an attempt to influence 2016’s US presidential election, the social network said.

In a small number of cases the adverts named one of the candidates, Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, but most instead promoted divisive messages on issues like immigration, race, gay rights, and gun rights.

The operation lasted two years and involved at least 3,000 individual adverts bought at key times throughout the campaign.

Facebook said it was co-operating with inquiries by Congress into whether Russia sought to influence the election. The purchased adverts were linked to 470 accounts and pages that Facebook said were “inauthentic” and has now suspended.

Alex Stamos, Facebook’s chief security officer, said the accounts were connected to each other and “likely operated out of Russia”.