The Australian Competition and Consumer (ACCC) claims that Facebook promotes scam crypto projects. Part of the antitrust regulator’s 2022 lawsuit claims against Meta asserted that over half of crypto-related ads on its social media platform, Facebook, were scams.
In response, the tech giant said the watchdog’s assessment data is outdated and unreliable. Meta said it has since adopted measures to address the issue.
Australia’s Antitrust Watchdog Says Facebook Ads Promote Crypto Scams
The ACCC sued Meta in 2022, alleging that it aids and abets false, misleading conduct by publishing celebrity scam ads.
In a recent court filing, the ACCC claimed that after analyzing adverts published on Facebook, 58% of crypto-related ads were scams and violated Meta’s advertisement policies.
The regulator said it identified 600 ads during its investigation but is focusing only on 234. It also claims it could identify other celebrity scam instances after the investigation.
The competition watchdog claimed that Meta knew that since January 2018, most crypto ads on Facebook used misleading promotional practices.
Further, the ACCC outlined unverified scam ads flaunting fake endorsements and images of influential Australian figures and celebrities. Some of the celebrities mentioned include TV host David Koch, prominent entrepreneur Dick Smith, Mike Baird, the former NSW premier Andrew Forrest, Chris Brown, Justin Hemmes, etc.
The regulator alleged that Meta has failed to adopt practical measures to prevent or reduce the prevalence of such scam ads. The ACCC wrote that Meta could have adopted a technology that would warn users against engaging with such ads, but it has failed to do so.
Meanwhile, a Meta spokesperson refuted all the ACCC’s claims, saying they relied on outdated information from 2018. The spokesperson also noted that the assessment was done using a limited data set and doesn’t accurately represent the current status of Meta’s platform.
“The preliminary analysis referred is an allegation in the ACCC’s claims and relates to a historic internal study from 2018 of a small sample of ads,” the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson also noted that Meta will duly respond to the allegations. He said that scammers use every available platform while evolving and adopting sophisticated means to evade enforcement.
In addition, the spokesperson affirmed Meta’s commitment to establishing measures to prevent scams and protect its users.
Meta Faces Backlash for Allegedly Aiding Scam Ads
The ACCC acknowledges Meta’s efforts to remove ads and ban associated accounts once it receives complaints. However, the regulator said the firm still earns revenue from similar ads.
Meta contests this claim, arguing it has adopted more measures to curb the menace. The firm said it used manual reviews and even implemented automated technology to prevent or take down such ads.
The tech company also said it used the Australian Online Scams Codes and updated ad guidelines to ensure only legit adverts are published.
Currently, Meta is exploring other more sophisticated means. According to Meta’s spokesperson, Meta is working on adopting machine learning techniques to identify accounts and content that violate its policy.
Meta said it deleted 436 million spam content and 631 million fake accounts from Facebook in Q1 2024 alone. Moreover, Facebook actions 98.2% of spam content and 99.4% of fake accounts even before users report them.
Meanwhile, some celebrities sued Meta for failing to take action against crypto and other associated scams pretending to have their endorsement.
In June 2022, Andrew Forrest, an Australian mining tycoon, filed a lawsuit against Meta in a California District Court. Forrest claimed that Facebook’s self-help ad interface aided scammers in developing ads.
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