NEW YORK (AP) — WhatsApp has taken down 6.8 million accounts that were “linked to criminal scam centers” targeting people online around that world, its parent company Meta said this week.

In a significant move to combat the growing threat of online fraud, Meta has taken decisive action against scam activity on WhatsApp. As part of its broader effort to enhance platform safety, the tech company has removed millions of suspicious accounts and introduced new features designed to protect users from deception.

Many of the accounts were linked to criminal groups operating in South East Asia, the social media giant said.