Facebook has announced it has increased its capabilities to take down fake accounts and reduce false news ahead of the European elections in May.

In late March, the social media platform will also launch new tools to help prevent foreign interference and make political advertising more transparent.

Anyone hoping to buy political ads will need to be authorised - meaning advertisers will have to confirm their identity and clarify who is responsible for the ads.

More information about the ads themselves will also be made available for users to see.

A 'completely searchable' library of ads will reveal details of an ad's performance, such as the demographics of who saw it.

The social media company explained: "These tools will cover not only campaign ads, but also issue ads – ads which don’t mention a candidate or political party but do discuss highly-debated and important topics."

In the final weeks before the elections, Facebook is planning to set up new operation centres focused on election integrity - including one in Dublin - that will involve teams from across Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp.

The firm hopes those 'task forces' will serve as an "added layer of defence" against fake news, hate speech, voter suppression and election interference.

Explaining their new tactics, Facebook's Anika Geisel said: "We’re up against smart and well-funded adversaries who are adapting and changing their tactics, just as we are getting better at preventing abuse.

"But we believe that this higher level of transparency is good for democracy and is good for the electoral process. Transparency helps everyone, including political watchdog groups and journalists, keep advertisers accountable for who they say they are and what they say to different audiences."

Facebook and other social media companies have faced increased scrutiny over their approach to elections in the wake of the 2016 US presidential campaign.

In the lead-up to the Eighth Amendment referendum, Facebook blocked ads from outside Ireland - saying concerns had been raised about organisations and individuals based outside the country trying to influence the outcome of the vote.