Facebook demands LAPD end social media surveillance and use of fake accounts

Company's letter to LA police chief comes after the Guardian revealed that the department partnered with a tech firm that enables undercover spying

• How LAPD partnered with tech firm that enables spying
• The software that studies your Facebook friends to predict crimes

Facebook is demanding that the Los Angeles police department cease all use of dummy" accounts on its platforms and stop collecting data on users for surveillance.

The letter, addressed to the LAPD chief, Michel Moore, on Thursday, comes after the Guardian contacted Facebook about two stories that revealed the department partnered in 2019 with Voyager Labs, a tech company that claims it can predict emerging threats" and solve crime by analyzing social media information such as a person's friends, posts and usernames.