Facebook to remove 'likes' on pages from deactivated, dead holders' accounts

In a move that could hit pages across the social networking site, Facebook will soon remove all 'likes' received by them from accounts that have either been deactivated or those owned by people who have died.

The process of removing the 'likes' is due to begin in a few weeks.

According to a report by the Independent, it is uncertain how many likes will be reduced from each page.

"Facebook will only remove likes from those accounts that have been manually deactivated, leaving those that have been deactivated as a result of being dormant," said the report.

Earlier in December, Instagram removed followers from many accounts, reducing counts by 15 per cent. Facebook only expects a "slight dip" in the number.