Meta was accused of publishing scam crypto ads

An Australian regulator has sued the platform for publishing advertisements for scam crypto projects involving public figures

18.03.2022 - 12:00

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What’s new? The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has sued Meta (formerly Facebook) for publishing scam crypto ads featuring celebrities.

The ACCC believes that Meta’s employees were aware of the illegal cryptocurrency ads.

The famous people featured in the ads included Australian entrepreneur Dick Smith, TV host David Koch and former New South Wales Prime Minister Mike Baird.

Link to the ACCC website

What is the essence of the scam crypto ad? The ad contained links that took the Facebook users to the fake articles quoting public figures. The users were registering, after which they were contacted by criminals to convince them to invest in scam projects.

How does the ACCC comment on the situation? The Australian regulator claims that the publication of scam crypto ads violates the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act (ASIC Act). ACCC Chair Rod Sims said Meta is responsible for the ads it publishes on its platform.

What precedents are already in place? In February 2022, the Australian entrepreneur Andrew Forrest sued Meta for posting ads that used his name to defraud victims. However, the platform dismissed Forrest’s allegations because the businessman has a Facebook account, which means he agreed to the terms of service.

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