Meta suspended the accounts of several public figures and media organizations on its social media platform Threads earlier this week, prompting the Digital Ministry to launch an investigation. The ministry stated this Monday that they have already asked Meta to assist affected users in restoring their accounts.

Affected accounts included Taoyuan City Councilor Huang Chiung-hui (黃瓊慧), former Taipei City Mayor and TPP founder Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), former  Legislator Chen Po-wei (陳柏惟), and influencers Pa Chiung (八炯) and Holger Chen (館長), in addition to the FTV News and Kuomintang Youth League accounts. 

In all cases, Threads cited the reason for suspension as “under 13 years old.” Under Meta’s current policies, all users must be at least 13 years old to use its platforms; Meta also has built-in protections for Teen Accounts, which automatically restrict who can contact teenagers and what content they can view. The company is in the process of developing new technology that will be able to detect whether an account belongs to a teenager even if the account is registered with an adult birth date. 

The Digital Ministry contacted Meta’s Taiwan office after receiving complaints from users Monday morning. Meta released a statement later that evening saying the issue arose from a technical error in its age verification system rather than any targeted action toward specific groups or individuals.

The ministry emphasized that safeguarding digital rights is their priority and that they will require the platform operator to communicate their findings clearly to the public.