As the 2018 elections draw closer, Facebook said Tuesday that it removed 32 pages and fake accounts engaged in political posts that included controversial topics such as #AbolishICE and Black Lives Matter.

Facebook said the activities were similar to those of Russia’s Internet Research Agency, which the company said interfered in the 2016 election, but that it couldn’t confirm the identity of the group or groups involved. An Internet Research Agency account disabled last year also shared an event created by one of the banned pages, Facebook said.

“We’re still in the very early stages of our investigation and don’t have all the facts — including who may be behind this,” the company said adding that the creators of the accounts had done more to obscure their identities than previous Russia-based users.

The Menlo Park social media giant plans to double its security team, which removes abusive content, to 20,000 people by the end of the year. That investment is expected to slow its booming profits and was part of the reason the company’s stock plunged a record 19 percent last week after weaker-than-expected earnings.

The removed accounts included eight pages and 17 user profiles on Facebook as well as seven accounts on the photo-sharing app Instagram, which is owned by Facebook.

Facebook shared the information with U.S. law enforcement agencies, Congress, other tech companies and the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab, which partnered with Facebook in May.

“One of my top priorities for 2018 is to prevent misuse of Facebook,” CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a statement. “That’s why we’re investing so heavily in security — including more people and better technology — and working with law enforcement as well as other tech companies so we’re better prepared for these threats.”

Michael Cornfield, a professor at George Washington University who focuses on politics and technology, said Facebook’s efforts won’t deter more fake accounts from being created.

“They’re playing whack-a-mole, and that won’t be enough,” Cornfield said. “For every 32 accounts they identify and delist, there’ll be more.”

Cornfield is also uneasy that Facebook is dictating what pages warrant removal. He would prefer the company provide more information on the groups behind posts so users are informed of biases.

“I’m glad they have an attitude of civic responsibility, but the power they wield can be clumsy at this,” Cornfield said. “I prefer labeling to removing.

“Facebook can empower users to check sources. I think that would really be helpful,” he added.

A pending Senate bill called the Honest Ads Act would require tech companies to disclose information on political ads at the same standard of television and radio stations. But Cornfield is doubtful it will pass, given it has only one Republican co-sponsor: John McCain.

The banned Facebook pages included Aztlan Warriors, Black Elevation, Mindful Being, and Resisters.

The pages posted messages that opposed President Trump and promoted African American and Native American heritage and the “war against colonialism,” according to screenshots provided by Facebook. Russian-backed groups have previously promoted both right-wing and left-wing political causes on social media, in a bid to inflame American tensions.

The Black Elevation and Resisters pages also posted job listings for event coordinators. The Resisters page created an event called No Unite the Right 2 — DC, a counterprotest against white nationalist groups, that was to take place next week in Washington, D.C. Facebook said the Resisters page contacted five legitimate pages who promoted the event, which drew over 600 Facebook users who said they would attend. Facebook has removed the event, notified the legitimate pages and is beginning to notify users.

At least one banned page had over 290,000 followers, while four pages had between zero and 10 followers and the Instagram accounts had no followers.

The pages created about 30 events, with the largest attracting 1,400 Facebook users saying they would attend.

The accounts created more than 9,500 posts and ran about 150 ads for around $11,000. They were created between March 2017 and May 2018, Facebook said.

Some of the banned Facebook operatives may have used similar tactics on Twitter. A Twitter account also called Black Elevation with the same photo as the Facebook page was created in March 2017, according to archive.org. It has since been suspended.

Twitter didn’t immediately respond to a request for more information about the account.

Cornfield said he expects more social media political meddling as the November elections approach.

“It's certainly going to escalate before November, (afterward) it will subside and mutate,” he said.

Roland Li is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: roland.li@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rolandli