Facebook apologized Sunday for sending out its Safety Check notifications following the Easter Sunday bombing in Lahore, Pakistan to users nowhere near the suicide attack.
Facebook activated the safety feature following the deadly attack on Christians celebrating Easter in a park in the eastern Pakistani city that left at least 70 people dead.
The Safety Check feature allows family and friends to check in with those in affected areas to let them know they’re safe. The tool allows users to check in as “Safe,” which sends a notification to their friends list.
READ MORE: Death toll rises to 70 after Easter bombing in Pakistan
However, social media users in Canada, United States and the U.K. reported receiving the Safety Check feature even though they were thousands of kilometres away from the deadly bombing.
Facebook apologized for the bug late Sunday.
READ MORE: Facebook activates ‘Safety Check’ feature following Brussels explosions
“We activated Safety Check today in Lahore, Pakistan, after an explosion that took place there. We hope the people in the area of the bombing find Safety Check a useful and helpful way to let their friends and family know they are okay,” the social media site said in a statement. “Unfortunately, many people not affected by the crisis received a notification asking if they were okay. This kind of bug is counter to our intent. We worked quickly to resolve the issue and we apologize to anyone who mistakenly received the notification.”
Facebook has activated the safety tool in recent terror attacks including Paris and Brussels.
–with a file from Nicole Bogart
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