ANEM ALARM: The Prosecutor's Office to reconsider the email in which responsibility is taken for the attack on the Instagram accounts of the media.
An email was received yesterday at the addresses of several editorial offices from the address meta.saradnici@proton.me, in which "responsibility" is taken for the shutdown of the Instagram accounts of certain media, organizations, and individuals.
The message highlighted: “We told you that we would shut down your social media accounts if you wrote negatively about our president, and we did just that. What can you do? That’s how it is when you know people who work at Meta INC! Just keep insulting our president, Aleksandar Vučić, and your social media accounts will be shut down every time because you spread misinformation. Insulting our president means account termination. Aleksandar Vučić is an emperor, and we can’t wait for him to run for prime minister; he should rule forever!”
In the signature of the message, the names of individuals unrelated to this case were misused with the aim of targeting those same individuals.
Veran Matić, president of the Board of the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM), member of the Permanent Working Group for the Safety of Journalists, and operator of the Safe Line for Journalists at 0800 100 115, reported new information to the Prosecutor's Office for High-Tech Crime. A few days ago, a message was sent from a similar email to the same editorial offices, announcing that their Instagram accounts would be shut down.
“This attack was announced, and it is necessary to determine whether the person who sent the announcement and then the second message, in which they claim to have carried out a threat, actually did so or if it was organized by someone else. Information dissemination in Serbia, as well as globally, has largely shifted from traditional media to social media – Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, X, and Telegram. In addition to media with their extensions on social media, we also have student accounts that are trusted. There are also youth and student media whose natural environment is on social media, and with whom the authorities are trying to find ways to block,” stated Matić.
ANEM demands that the relevant authorities investigate these threats, as well as all circumstances surrounding the shutdown of Instagram accounts from previous reports, as well as the creation of a fake account for the weekly Radar. In the meantime, thanks to direct contacts between media and individuals with Meta, the functionality of the Instagram accounts has been restored.
Let us remind you that due to bot attacks, more than 20 accounts of media, organizations, and individuals were temporarily suspended or permanently shut down, including the profiles of Nova.rs, Radar, Autonomija, CRTA, photojournalist Gavrilo Andrić, and others, but ultimately all were restored.
Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM)
The project "Violence Prevention and Journalist Protection System" is being implemented by ANEM in partnership with Insajder TV and the Center for the Development of Local Media, with the support of the European Union.
The OSCE Mission in Serbia supported ANEM's project “24/7 SOS Helpline for Assistance to Journalists and Other At-Risk Media Workers,” as part of the EU-funded project “Strengthening Freedom of Expression and Media Freedom in Serbia.”
