Facebook, already under fire for its handling of misinformation and fake news, is going to launch its independent Oversight Board in mid to late October. This will put the board in action just before US Presidential elections due to take place on November 3. Facebook had plans to launch the Oversight Board last year but it was delayed due to coronavirus pandemic.

The board will initially have the power to review decisions to take down posts from Facebook and Instagram and recommend policy changes.

Oversight Board member Alan Rusbridger told Reuters in an interview that the board was now aiming for an October launch. A spokesman confirmed that timetable, saying the launch, originally planned for last year, had also been slowed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Rusbridger said he did not know whether the board would hear cases about content connected to the U.S. presidential election.

Although this is a step towards improving Facebook’s handling of problematic content, some experts have said that that it will not be able to help combat misinformation as the board won’t have authority to evaluate posts that the company decides to leave up.

Facebook has been on the receiving end of criticism about the kind of content it allows on its platform, especially political and social.

On Wednesday, Facebook took down pages that were created in China and were aimed at influencing US elections. Facebook said that people behind these activities tried to hide their location and identity using VPNs.

In addition to concerns surrounding content, Facebook is facing flak for privacy issues as well. On September 18, Bloomberg reported that a lawsuit was filed against Facebook for allegedly spying on Instagram users through phone camera. Facebook owns Instagram. Facebook had declined to comment at the time.