Facebook warns about government-sponsored attacks on accounts

It's one thing to have your Facebook account attacked, it's quite another to have it targeted by government-sponsored attackers. It seems as though attacks of this kind are on the increase, and Facebook has implemented a warning system for anyone whose account comes under such an attack.

But this is about more than just letting you know if someone has tried to log into your account without permission. Facebook believes that the problem is serious enough to suggest that anyone who receives such a warning should consider either formatting their computer, or buying a new one.

Seeking out malicious activity is something that Facebook has placed increased importance on in recent years, so in many ways this is just an extension of an existing security program. The social network says that it will "notify you if we believe your account has been targeted or compromised by an attacker suspected of working on behalf of a nation-state".

Facebook assures users that it takes steps to secure accounts that it believes to have been attacked by "state-sponsored actors", going on to say that the new warning system is meant to serve as an advisory that those affected should look at all of their online accounts for signs of suspicious activity. Alex Stamos, Chief Security Officer, said:

It's important to understand that this warning is not related to any compromise of Facebook's platform or systems, and that having an account compromised in this manner may indicate that your computer or mobile device has been infected with malware. Ideally, people who see this message should take care to rebuild or replace these systems if possible.

Facebook doesn't give any details of how attacks are determined to be state-sponsored, but assures users that warnings will only be sent out when there is a good deal of evidence to support them.

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