Scam Ads Are Flooding Social Media. These Former Meta Staffers Have a Plan
Wired8 hrs
Report: Meta Projected $16B Revenue From Scam Ads in 2024
Above: The logos of Meta, Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp are displayed on a phone screen. Image copyright: Piotr Swat/SOPA Images/Getty Images
The Spin
Establishment-critical narrative
Meta knowingly profits from scam advertising, with internal documents revealing the company projected $16 billion in 2024 revenue from fraudulent ads promoting fake investment schemes and illegal products. Despite claims of aggressive enforcement, former Meta executives warn that scam prevention technology has stagnated while criminals use AI to create more convincing deepfake ads that platforms fail to stop effectively.
Pro-establishment narrative
Meta has comprehensive advertising standards and robust enforcement systems to protect users from scams and fraud. The company prohibits deceptive practices through detailed policies and uses both automated and manual review processes to catch violations before ads go live. Meta's multi-layered approach includes removing over 134 million scam ads this year alone and has achieved a 50% decline in user reports about fraudulent content since summer 2024.
Limited Coverage
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