Facebook Will Soon Tell Users If They Were Exposed To Russian Ads

Facebook users will soon know whether they liked or followed any pages or Instagram accounts that Russian operatives created to push divisive content as part of their campaign to influence the 2016 presidential election.

According to Facebook, the tool will let users know whether they liked or followed any pages or Instagram accounts created by the Internet Research Agency between January 2015 and August 2017. The Internet Research Agency is a troll farm based in St. Petersburg, Russia, according to intelligence officials.

In its January report documenting Russian interference in the 2016 election that was released to the public, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said the so-called Internet Research Agency was likely financed by a close Putin ally with ties to Russian intelligence.

Facebook says the tool will be available in the Facebook Help Center by the end of the year.

"It is important that people understand how foreign actors tried to sow division and mistrust using Facebook before and after the 2016 US election," Facebook said in its announcement. "That’s why as we have discovered information, we have continually come forward to share it publicly and have provided it to congressional investigators. And it’s also why we’re building the tool we are announcing today."

Several of the ads were made public by lawmakers at a hearing earlier this month. The ads, seen by vast numbers of people, encouraged street demonstrations against Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, and fostered support and opposition to Bernie Sanders, Muslims, gays, blacks and the icons of the Civil Rights movement.

The few dozen ads that were made public are a small sampling of the roughly 3,000 Russia-connected ones that Facebook identified and turned over to Congress. The ads underscore how foreign agents sought to sow confusion, anger and discord among Americans through messages on hot-button topics.

Also See: Timeline: Trump Campaign Contacts With Russia

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Photo by John Elswick/Associated Press