Sao Paulo, Oct 19 (AP) The messaging service WhatsApp says it has sent "cease and desist" letters to stop companies from sending bulk messages related to Brazil's election and banned their accounts.

The actions come after a report that businessmen linked to leading far-right candidate Jair Bolsonaro allegedly bankrolled a campaign that planned to spread fake news on WhatsApp to benefit his candidacy. His rival, Fernando Haddad, has asked Brazil's electoral court to investigate.

WhatsApp said Friday that it has banned hundreds of thousands of accounts using spam-detection technology to identify "abnormal behavior" since the Brazilian electoral period began in August.

The company said the account of Bolsonaro's son, Flavio, was banned a few days earlier because it was spamming users. Flavio Bolsonaro said Friday that his account has now been unblocked. AP KUN

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