The Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) disseminates content through Facebook to recruit, train and pay criminals, even when it violates the rules of conduct of the social network, according to an investigation by The Wall Street Journal.
A review of documents carried out by the US newspaper reveals that employees of the social network have reported this situation and other illicit activities that happen particularly in developing countries, and have pointed out that the company’s response is not adequate or is null.
Read: CJNG threatens journalist Azucena Uresti for ‘supporting’ armed civilians in Michoacán
According to the media, a former police officer hired by Facebook detected that the CJNG, through that network and Instagram, recruited criminals. They identified key people, shaved the payments they made, and discovered how they were recruiting poor teenagers to attend training camps.
“Facebook posts showed recruiters warning potential young hires about being seriously beaten or killed by the cartel if they try to leave the training camp,” the former official wrote.
The facebook posts, which included photos of weapons and crime scenes, were posted under the name CJNG even though the company had internally labeled the cartel as one of the “Dangerous People and Organizations” whose pages should have been automatically removed from the platform under Facebook policy.
See also: Clashes between organized crime and self-defense groups displace about 2,000 people in Altos de Chiapas
The documents show that the former police officer recommended that the company improve its follow-up to ensure that the bans are applied to designated groups and try to better understand cartel activity.
Facebook did not completely remove the cartel’s pages that contained the acronym “CJNG” on that network and Instagram, but content linked to the criminal group was deleted.
It took the company several months to heed the recommendations and close the accounts. Instagram and Facebook accounts announcing cartel training and recruitment remained active for at least five months before being deleted.
Since then, however, more pages have appeared on behalf of the group showing weapons and beheadings.
Find out: US links two alleged CJNG members to attack on Harfuch and murder of Aristotle Sandoval
Employee reports also point to platforms being used in the Middle East to lure women into human trafficking, and warned that armed groups in Ethiopia used the networks to incite violence against ethnic minorities. They sent alerts to their bosses about organ sales, pornography and government action against political dissent.
Facebook removes some pages, though many more operate openly, according to the documents.
Facebook told The Wall Street Journal that the company is investing in artificial intelligence to bolster its enforcement against criminal groups and continues to beef up its security measures to prevent trafficking.
With information from The Wall Street Journal.
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