Facebook says it is securing Afghan user accounts amid Taliban takeover

FILE PHOTO: The Facebook logo is displayed on a mobile phone in this picture illustration taken December 2, 2019. REUTERS/Johanna Geron/Illustration

(Reuters) - Facebook Inc has temporarily removed the ability for people to view or search the friends lists of accounts it has determined to be in Afghanistan, the company's head of security policy said in a tweet on Thursday as Afghans feared for their safety amid the Taliban takeover.

The social media company has also made a "one-click tool" for users in Afghanistan to lock down their accounts, so that people they are not Facebook friends with are unable to see their timeline posts or share their profile photos, Facebook's Nathaniel Gleicher said in a tweet.