Facebook says it will crack down on bogus 'likes'

Menlo Park, Calif.—Facebook Inc. announced changes designed to remove counterfeit “likes.”

In a blog post, Facebook said the automated changes will remove those “likes” generated by malware, compromised accounts, deceived users or bulk purchases. It said most people won't notice the changes because, on average, less than 1% of “likes” on any given Facebook Page will be removed.

“These improvements to our site integrity systems benefit both users and brands alike,” the blog post said. “Users will continue to connect to the pages and profiles they authentically want to subscribe to, and pages will have a more accurate measurement of fan count and demographics.”