A wave of Facebook accounts in Cambodia were disabled on Thursday and Friday without explanation, affecting online sellers, content creators, journalists and activists, a digital security expert said.
“Within 48 hours, I observed an overwhelming number of accounts disabled in Cambodia,” said Nget Moses, a Phnom Penh-based independent digital rights researcher, citing at least 20 people he spoke with who were notified by Facebook’s parent company, Meta, of their account freeze on Friday.
A screenshot of one of the disabled profiles obtained by CamboJA News said there is a 30-day window to appeal if users believe the action was a “mistake” before the account is permanently disabled.
It does not clarify why the account was disabled, but Facebook guidelines say accounts can be disabled for serious or repeated violations of its “Community Standards,” including impersonation, spam or other inauthentic activity.
Moses speculated that recent investigations by U.S. and U.K. authorities into illicit scam networks in Cambodia, and the sanctioning of the Prince Group conglomerate for alleged involvement in transnational crime, may be connected to the suspensions.
He did not provide an estimated figure for how many profiles were affected or whether there was any link to scam operations.
Post and Telecommunications Ministry spokesperson Liv Sophanarith could not be reached for comment.
Last year, Meta launched a campaign to crack down on organized crime groups behind so-called “pig butchering” scams, online schemes in which victims are groomed over time and tricked into investing in fake platforms, many of which have been documented to have originated in Cambodian and other regional scam compounds.
Meta also said it removed around 10 million impersonator accounts in the first half of 2025.
The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent via email to its media inquiry address..
Freelance journalist Vann Vichar said his account, which had about 200,000 followers, was disabled on Friday.
“I am a journalist. I only use Facebook to share and disseminate information,” he said, adding that he hopes Meta will reactivate his account soon.
He has since created a new account, starting from scratch to rebuild his network of friends and followers.
“I spent over ten years building my credibility on Facebook, but it was suddenly taken away. It’s a very painful loss,” Veacha said.
Meu Chandara, president of the Cambodian Youth Network, a local group focused on youth civic engagement, said disabling his personal account disrupted his workflow, which involves posting about the group’s operations and promoting human rights.
“I don’t know why Meta disabled my account,” he said. “I think it might be because Facebook detected spam activity or multiple logins from different locations.”
Moses recommended that those whose accounts have been disabled file an appeal through Facebook’s help center and download their account information in the meantime.
Source: https://cambojanews.com/wave-of-facebook-accounts-disabled-in-cambodia-reasons-unclear/
