TLDR:
- Meta removed 8,000 “celeb bait” scam ads from Facebook and Instagram
- Australian scam reports increased by nearly 20% in 2023, with losses of A$2.7 billion
- Meta partnered with Australian banks to launch the Fraud Intelligence Reciprocal Exchange (Fire) tool
- Fire resulted in the removal of over 9,000 scam pages and 8,000 AI-generated celebrity investment scams
- The Australian government is planning to introduce an anti-scam law by the end of 2024
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has teamed up with Australian banks to tackle the growing problem of “celebrity bait” scam advertisements on its platforms.
This collaboration comes as the Australian government prepares to introduce new anti-scam legislation by the end of 2024.
In recent months, Meta has taken down approximately 9,000 scam ads from Facebook and Instagram. These ads often use artificial intelligence-generated images of celebrities to trick users into investing in fake schemes.
The removal of these ads was made possible through 102 reports received since April from the Australian Financial Crimes Exchange (AFCX), an intelligence-sharing organization run by major Australian banks.
The issue of online scams has become increasingly prevalent in Australia. In 2023, scam reports jumped by nearly 20%, with total losses reaching A$2.7 billion, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). This surge in fraudulent activity has prompted the government to take action.
To address this problem, Meta has partnered with seven Australian banks to launch the Fraud Intelligence Reciprocal Exchange (Fire) tool.
This new system provides a direct channel for banks to report known scams to Meta, allowing for quicker identification and removal of fraudulent content.
Since its pilot launch in April, Fire has led to the removal of more than 9,000 scam pages and 8,000 AI-generated celebrity investment scams on Facebook and Instagram.
David Agranovich, Meta’s director of threat disruption, explained that the collaboration with financial institutions provides valuable insights into scam activities that may not be immediately visible on the social media platforms. This information sharing allows Meta to connect the dots between on-platform and off-platform fraudulent activities more effectively.
The Fire program currently involves seven major banks: ANZ, Bendigo Bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, HSBC, Macquarie, National Australia Bank, and Westpac. These banks use the AFCX’s Intel Loop information sharing service to report scams to the Fire system.
While the initial results of the Fire program are promising, the scale of the problem remains significant. In August alone, there were 1,600 reported losses from social media scams in Australia. Meta has reported that globally, it took down 1.2 billion fake accounts in the last quarter, with 99.7% of these being removed before users reported them.
The Australian government is taking steps to combat the rise in online scams. A draft legislation for a scams prevention framework was released last month by Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones.
This proposed law would create codes for banks, telecommunications companies, and social media platforms, requiring them to take action against scams and implement proper dispute resolution processes for victims. The public consultation on this draft legislation is set to close on October 4, 2024.
The proposed anti-scam law could impose significant penalties on companies that fail to meet their obligations in cracking down on fraudulent activities. Fines of up to A$50 million (approximately $34 million) are being considered for non-compliant social media, financial, and telecommunications companies.
Meta’s efforts to combat scams come amid ongoing legal challenges. The company is currently defending itself against a lawsuit filed by the ACCC in 2022, which accused Meta of failing to stop the spread of cryptocurrency advertisements featuring unauthorized images of Australian celebrities.
Meta faces a separate civil lawsuit in California brought by Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest, who claims the company has enabled the publication of thousands of fake cryptocurrency ads using his likeness.
