Facebook says an operation likely based in Russia spent $100,000 to buy advertisements promoting political and social issues in the United States. The company said about 3,000 ads were bought by people operating nearly 500 fake Facebook accounts. The ads ran between June 2015 and May 2017, within the period of the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign. In a blog post, Facebook Chief Security Officer Alex Stamos said most of the ads did not specifically name the U.S. election or any candidates. Rather, they appeared aimed at amplifying divisive social and political messages on a range of major issues. These included LGBT rights, race relations and gun control.