Technology
Coordinated bot attack forces Macedonian newspaper Sloboden Pechat Instagram shutdown
Sloboden Pechat’s Instagram profile was locked after a coordinated bot attack aimed at reducing visibility and triggering platform restrictions.
One of North Macedonia’s most influential media outlets, Sloboden Pechat, had its Instagram profile locked following a sustained, coordinated bot attack. The attack involved hundreds of identical comments from suspicious bot accounts using the word “like,” followed by a surge of automated likes designed to trigger Meta’s automated moderation systems. The result was a de facto “shadow ban,” where the profile remains partially accessible only to existing followers and suffers severely restricted reach. The editorial team reports that the attack was sophisticated, multi‑phase, and clearly aimed at silencing the outlet on Instagram. The incident has been reported to the Cyber Security Unit of the Ministry of Interior, but the attack has continued despite reporting.
- Status
- active
- Location
- North Macedonia
- Date added
- 2026-04-02 08:17 UTC
- Added by
- nikieuropeapdrmis
- Last updated
- 2026-04-02 08:17 UTC
- Source
- https://meta.mk/en/sloboden-pechat-zakluchen-instagram-botovski-napad-na-eden-od-najvlijatelnite-med
- Connected threats
-
- Not Available