The ACCC has just rolled out a shocking report about the dark side of Facebook’s ads, focusing more on crypto marketing schemes.
As per their analysis, 58 percent of the ads were outlined as scams or deep fakes. They target victims without them knowing, leaving them in a vulnerable position. Furthermore, the ads go against the app’s own policy and yet Meta’s crackdown is far from where it needs to be.
The news comes amid a court battle that came into play in 2022 where the ACCC punished Meta for fake ads of celebrities. Facebook’s parent firm was accused of taking part in misleading marketing tactics and assisting advertisers in promoting fake schemes.
As per the ruling, the ACC alleged that Meta is well aware of what is going on and yet chooses to turn a blind eye. Seeing celebs included to trap victims into believing it’s the truth is also very alarming.
A-list stars from the industry that were added to the scams to make them seem more real included Mel Gibson and Nicole Kidman, the report explained. Similarly, top musicians and athletes were also a part of the list of crypto scams as deepfakes made it seem so real.
The fact that the figures of these scams keep increasing means it’s a serious problem. We now have leading politicians like the UK’s PM transformed into a deepfake and used in scam content while tech billionaire Elon Musk is another notable mention.
The ACCC has decided to sue Meeta over the issue. The tech giant refuses to take the matter seriously and only generates action when asked or warned to do so. Therefore, a lack of seriousness on the situation has left the regulatory body with no other option.
Meta is generating a lot of revenue through such actions and it’s time it was put to shame. Meanwhile, more details from the lawsuit alleged how the company could curb the issue a long time back.
They have the means to generate warnings about such scams but turning a blind eye is proof of how unbothered they are regarding the entire situation. And while scammers do arise on all apps, Meta is doing very little to put an end to them.
Image: DIW-Aigen
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