Australian regulator accuses Facebook of advertising cryptocurrency scams.

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) пода́ла в суд на владельца Facebook компанию Meta за публикацию вводящей в заблуждение мошеннической рекламы с участием знаменитостей.

According to the ACCC, the ads promoted investments in cryptocurrencies and get-rich-quick schemes on behalf of well-known Australians who had no connection to them.

The advertisements contained links that directed Facebook users to a fake media article, which contained statements attributed to the public figure featured in the advertising.

Users were then invited to sign up, after which scammers contacted them. Through various tactics they persuaded them to invest in fake schemes.

“A key part of Meta’s business is to provide advertisers with the ability to target users who are most likely to click the link and proceed to the landing page. These clicks generate substantial revenue for Facebook,” said ACCC chair Rod Sims.

The regulator contends that Meta did nothing to prevent the publication of fraudulent ads — they continued to appear on Facebook even after complaints from celebrities whose names or likenesses were used in them.

“In addition to immeasurable losses for consumers, this advertising also harms the reputations of public figures falsely associated with it,” said Sims.

He noted that in one “shocking case” a user fell for the scammers’ advertisement and lost 650,000 AUD (~$480,400).

“Meta should have done more to detect and remove false or misleading advertising on Facebook so that consumers would not fall victim to ruthless scammers,” emphasised the head of the ACCC.

The regulator charged the company with breaches of consumer-protection laws, as well as securities and investments laws. The ACCC sought a court injunction against Meta, reimbursement of costs, and penalties.

In November 2021, Facebook verified an unofficial page of Elon Musk. The account owner, with 153,000 followers immediately launched a fraudulent bitcoin giveaway on behalf of the entrepreneur.