Twitter steps up fight against fake accounts
San Francisco, Oct 2 : To further protect the integrity of elections, Twitter on Tuesday said it will now delete fake accounts engaged in a variety of emergent, malicious behaviours.
As platform manipulation tactics continue to evolve, the micro-blogging platform said it is expanding rules to better reflect how it identifies fake accounts and what types of inauthentic activity violate its guidelines before the US mid-term elections in November.
"Some of the factors that we will take into account when determining whether an account is fake include use of stock or stolen avatar photos, use of stolen or copied profile bios and use of intentionally misleading profile information, including profile location," said Del Harvey, Vice President, Trust and Safety, Twitter, in a blog post.
"We are expanding our enforcement approach to include accounts that deliberately mimic or are intended to replace accounts we have previously suspended for violating our rules," she added.
Twitter has also expanded the criteria for when it will take action on accounts which claim responsibility for a hack, which includes threats and public incentives to hack specific people and accounts.
"In August, we removed approximately 50 accounts misrepresenting themselves as members of various state Republican parties," informed Yoel Roth, Head of Site Integrity at Twitter.
"We have also taken action on Tweets sharing media regarding elections and political issues with misleading or incorrect party affiliation information," he added.
In August, Twitter removed 770 accounts engaging in coordinated behaviour which appeared to originate in Iran.
"Our automated detections continue to identify and challenge millions of potentially spammy and automated accounts per week. In the first half of September, we challenged an average of 9.4 million accounts each week," said Roth.
Twitter is also witnessing a decline in the average number of spam-related reports it receives from users each day -- from an average of approximately 17,000 per day in May to approximately 16,000 per day in September.
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Kota C-section deaths: Strict treatment protocols in OTs, ICUs ordered
Kota (PTI): In the wake of the death of four women due to infection after C-section delivery, Rajasthan principal secretary (health) Gayatri Rathore has ordered strict adherence to treatment protocols in emergency operation theatres, ICUs and other critical units in hospitals.
Rathore on Monday night visited the ICU of the Super Speciality Block at New Medical College Hospital here and spoke to the relatives of three postpartum women, Pinki, Dhanni Bai, and Aarti, about their health.
She also spoke to Ragini Meena, who is admitted to the ICU, and said the condition has improved considerably.
Four women, two each at NMCH and JK Lone Hospital, died after developing complications following a caesarean delivery.
Pinki Mahawar, 30, wife of Chandra Prakash, a daily wage labourer, died on Monday of a similar infection after a C-section delivery.
Priya Mahawar, 22, died after developing a kidney infection post-C-section in JK Lone Hospital on the intervening night of May 9 and May 10.
Before her, two other women, Payal and Jyoti Nayak, aged 26 and 19, died on May 5 and May 7, in the New Medical College Hospital.
Meanwhile, Rathore said the patients' treatment is being monitored by senior nephrologist Dr Dhananjay Agrawal, according to a statement.
She was briefed by Dr Vikas Khandelia on the treatment of all postpartum women who got the infection.
According to a statement, she also met Chandrakala and Sushila, who have been shifted to the nephrology ward, and enquired about their health. Their relatives said that both women are now in a much better condition.
Later on Monday, the official chaired a meeting at NMCH, took information from senior doctors and discussed all possible causes behind the deaths due to infection.
She said that treatment protocols and infection-free operation theatres should also be ensured at district hospitals and PHC-CHC levels, and warned of action in case of any negligence.
Rathore said an investigation is underway into every aspect of the case. Action has already been taken against doctors and nursing personnel found prima facie guilty, the statement said.
According to the statement, Rathore said regular sterilisation must be ensured in these emergency units to prevent any possibility of infection. Equipment and machines used during treatment should also be sterilised as per protocol.
Hospital in-charges and unit heads should regularly monitor whether all treatment protocols are being followed properly, it said.
Rathore said hospital superintendents may also use RMRS funds for immediate requirements in ICUs and operation theatres.
The meeting was attended by District Collector Piyush Samaria, City Superintendent of Police Tejaswini Gautam, Food Safety and Drug Control Commissioner Dr T Shubhamangala, Director of Public Health Dr Ravi Prakash Sharma, Principal of Kota Medical College Dr Nilesh Jain, Dr Dhananjay Agrawal, and doctors from Jaipur.
