WeChat begins crackdown on fake public account page views and followers

WeChat will begin cracking down on falsified pageviews and followers on public accounts beginning tomorrow (August 8), local media is reporting.

WeChat said that in order to “ensure the healthy operation of the platform” it would be attempting to eliminate false data, including that created by the use of bots. It said that while there may be some differences between past and new statistical data, it would not have an actual effect on traffic.

“Cracking down on fake views and fake followers is a pretty uncontroversial move. These have always been vanity metrics,” Andrew Schorr, founder of enterprise contact center solutions provider Grata, told TechNode. “We’ve seen clients run campaigns where the vendor was clearly buying followers for the client. You get unbelievable growth numbers during the campaign, then everyone unfollows you over the next couple weeks, and none of your real metrics see any impact,” he said.

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