Marruecos detecta cuentas falsas argelinas en redes sociales que tratan de dañar su imagen

Social networks and the privileges offered by the Internet are increasingly being used in a hostile manner and to destabilise people, companies, institutions, etc. Many hackers and virtual criminals use the influence of these platforms in society to carry out their attacks, which, on many occasions, have a different objective. A recent public report by Meta (formerly known as Facebook) has just revealed that Morocco is the target of many fake accounts on social networks in Algeria.

According to the application, several fake profiles have been detected spreading false and harmful information about Morocco, which is supposedly aimed at spreading a bad image of the country, while harming its interests and increasing tension between the population of the two neighbouring countries.

The people behind these profiles hide under female names. Moreover, the accounts are shown under Moroccan identities and as if they were created in Morocco in order to show the political, economic and social weakness of the Maghreb nation in Algeria, while highlighting its shortcomings. 

Despite this, the Moroccan press has taken up the matter and, under the information in the document itself, reveals that Algeria is behind these cyber-attacks on the Kingdom's image. According to the Moroccan daily Al Ahdath Al Maghribia, all these profiles that appear to have Moroccan origins have in fact been designed and created in Algeria, and hatred has been spread from there through these accounts on various social networks.

The Moroccan media claim that the Algerian regime is beginning to invest in virtual security and defence, and through the networks, they continue to maintain their hatred and enmity towards Morocco. For them, the Algerian military power is sparing no expense and it is claimed that, with these accounts, the main interest is to damage and contaminate the image, while showing a weak territorial integrity of the Kingdom that many take advantage of to attack and grow the existing hatred.

It is worth noting that this is not just a fact that occurs in the virtual world. Since time immemorial, when the two countries have maintained their rivalry, attempts have been made to damage the image of the Kingdom through various methods of propaganda and false information. 

Facebook, for its part, has reported that since it became aware of this issue, more than 130 profiles and more than 35 pages and forums within its publications, dedicated exclusively to this issue, have been closed. All of them were constantly active in the publication of disinformation against the Maghreb nation, where they were intended to serve as disseminators of false information aimed at Morocco and the country's own interests. 

Moreover, this process is not only limited to Facebook, but these profiles have also been seen on Instagram. According to Meta's official data, over the years, more than 11,000 fake profiles of Algerian origin have been detected with the aim of spreading hatred and a bad image against Morocco.

Al Ahdath Al Maghribia confirms that these fake accounts are propaganda tools of the Algerian military power. According to the Moroccan daily, Algeria's national security pays a salary to people who carry out this mission to spread hatred towards Morocco within the country. This has allowed a virtual war to be waged against the Alawi kingdom, which the Algerian military regime believed to be effective and to have good effects, but this has not been the case. It is also reported to have spent $5,550 to fund advertisements on both Facebook and Instagram to continue to instil enmity towards Morocco among Algerians.

Algeria and Morocco are two nations that have been debating for decades over which is the best in North Africa and who has more influence on the African continent. Right now, the two territories are in tension over Algeria's closure of the gas pipeline, which has stopped supplying the resource to Morocco, and over the Western Sahara issue.