Facebook Flags February 12 Election, Sparks Curiosity and Concern Among Bangladeshi Users
From Thursday night, February 5, Bangladeshi Facebook users have been receiving messages that read: “View official government information related to voting in the upcoming general election on February 12. Share this information to encourage friends to be prepared for election day.”
Through these notifications, Facebook is informing users about the much-anticipated 13th National Parliamentary Election, scheduled to be held on February 12. The messages primarily highlight key election-related information sourced from the Election Commission’s official website and present it directly to users on the platform.
The notification also urges users to prepare for voting and mentions how many Bangladeshi users have already shared election-related information concerning the 2026 national election up to that point.
However, the appearance of such messages has triggered mixed reactions. Many users have raised questions about whether Facebook is promoting the election campaign using government funding. Others have expressed concerns over personal data security, particularly about clicking on such messages and links.
Social media experts note that there is unprecedented enthusiasm and public interest surrounding this national election. Compared to traditional, on-the-ground campaigning, election-related outreach is far more visible on social media platforms—especially Facebook. As a result, election and voting topics are currently trending, and Facebook appears to be encouraging users to further amplify election-related discussions and information sharing to capitalise on this momentum.
Meanwhile, some users have responded with humour. Sharing screenshots of Facebook’s voting message, a few users jokingly wrote captions such as: “Election campaigning on Facebook! I can’t figure out whether brother Joker (Mark Zuckerberg) is doing this for free, or brother Yunus (Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus) has converted some taka into dollars!”
Others shared the post with captions expressing surprise, saying: “An election is happening in the country—and Facebook figured it out! Facebook asked me to share this. Has anyone else received this update?”
The mixed reactions reflect both the growing influence of social media in electoral processes and ongoing public debates over transparency, digital security, and the role of global platforms in national democratic events.
