David Edwards
According to preliminary research by Australia’s competition watchdog, more than half of the crypto ads on Facebook are either scams or breach Meta’s policies.
In 2022, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) sued Meta, Facebook’s parent company, alleging it had “aided and abetted” celebrity crypto scam ads. A court date for this case is still pending.
In a recent federal court filing, the ACCC reported that over 58% of the crypto ads they analyzed either violated Meta’s Advertising Policies or might be involved in scams.
These ads often misuse the images of prominent Australians like entrepreneur Dick Smith, billionaire James Packer, and Hollywood stars including Chris Hemsworth, Mel Gibson, Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe, and former politician Mike Baird.
While the filing doesn’t specify the financial impact of these scams, investment scams remain a major concern, with Scamwatch indicating they are a leading cause of financial losses in Australia.
