Facebook Steps Up Monitoring Ahead Of Taiwan Poll

Facebook vowed on Tuesday to step up monitoring for any attempt to use its platform to meddle in Taiwan's elections as the island's authorities say they face growing interference from Beijing.

Taiwan will elect a new president and parliament on January 11, and relations with the mainland are dominating the campaign.

Beijing has ramped up Taiwan's isolation ever since President Tsai Ing-wen took office three years ago because her party refuses to acknowledge that Taiwan is part of "one China".

Tsai is seeking a second term against Han Kuo-yu, a challenger who favours much warmer ties with Beijing. She and her party have accused Beijing of attempting to influence the elections by spreading disinformation via social media.

On Tuesday Facebook said it would establish a regional election centre in Singapore in the final weeks before Taiwan's elections, following similar moves in the United States, India, Indonesia and the European Union.

"Protecting elections at the company is a major priority for us," Kate Harbath, Facebook's public policy director and global elections lead, told reporters.

"Now we are heavily focused on these upcoming elections in Taiwan," she added, as well as upcoming polls in countries including Sri Lanka and Singapore.

"Each election has different risks," she said, adding that the company starts a year before an election to assess what is involved.

It will introduce strict criteria for political ads in Taiwan, requiring those who want to advertise about elections and politics to confirm their identity and location, and disclose who is responsible for the ad.

Facebook said it has also been working with third party checkers, including an independent fact-checking organisation in Taiwan.

Facebook in August removed hundreds of fake accounts it said were involved in "coordinated inauthentic behaviour" focused on Hong Kong's ongoing protests. (AFP)