In Somalia, Fake Death Certificates Are Weaponized to memorialize Facebook Accounts 

The pro-Farmajo figures in social media accused the current government officials of sending fake death certificates to Facebook which led these pages to be memorialized as legacy profiles of dead people.

News Keydmedia Online
4 July 2022

MOGADISHU, Somalia – In recent months, Somalia witnessed the rise of a much more sinister hacking trick that makes use of Facebook’s memorialization function, which becomes a new great danger.

Facebook has been made aware that two public figures – Ali Yare and Naima Abwan Qorane have passed away, and as the social media platform’s policy their highly followed pages are “memorialized.”

Ali and Naima are known to be ardent supporters of the former Somali president Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo. Fake death certificates were sent to Facebook to block the accounts critical to the government.

The hackers, known as “trickers” in the local online community created fake death certificates and obituaries using immigration-sourced passport data was used to send death reports to the accounts.

Ali Yare, who is currently serving as the deputy Mogadishu and Naima Qorane, a poet and author is the most hardcore Nabad &Nolol team formed during Farmajo’s presidency to defend him online.

The pro-Farmajo figures in social media accused the current government officials of sending fake death certificates to Facebook which led these pages to be memorialized as legacy profiles of dead people.

Keydmedia Online has reached out to Villa Somalia for comment on the matter but we got no reply.

A similar attack was subjected in the past to Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame, one of the main opponents of the Farmajo administration.

On the other hand, a pro-Farmajo journalist Abdirizak Tera said his service passport has been revoked from the national system of the government over his current administration's criticism online.

I am very disappointed that the Government System has removed my personal passport,” Tera who is currently in Turkey said in a tweet.

Tera was part of hundreds of individuals who have been granted service passports after working for the Farmajo regime as social media trolls in charge of spreading N&N propaganda and attacking critics.

This is the first time in the history of Somalia a citizen has been stripped of his/her citizenship due to their political opinions. It comes as a new leader – Hassan Sheikh takes over the office from Farmajo.

The Provisional Constitution of Somalia, Article 8 (People & Citizenship) Sub Article 4 states “Denial, suspension, or deprivation of Somali citizenship may not be based on political grounds.”

KEYDMEDIA English