Meta gets into trouble with the ACCC over cryptocurrency advertisements

Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook social media application, has landed into trouble with the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission which has signed a lawsuit against the billion-dollar firm in a Federal Court. The entire matter focuses on crypto scams being implemented via Facebook with the help of advertisements. 

Meta Platforms, which has officially shut down its stablecoin project, has come under the crosshairs of the Australian authority following a huge increase in the promotion of cryptocurrencies which are actually scams. These tokens and projects are advertised as get-rich-quick schemes and since there is not much knowledge about the blockchain industry among many people, they lose a huge chunk of their money. 

Meta Platforms sued over advertisement

As per the official statement, the ACCC believes that Meta Platforms has breached the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) or the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act (ASIC Act). This is because “Meta assured its users it would detect and prevent spam and promote safety on Facebook, but it failed to prevent the publication of other similar celebrity endorsement cryptocurrency scam ads on its pages or warn users.” 

There were many crypto-based ads that included claims to be endorsed by big names in the industry like businessman Dick Smith, TV presenter David Koch and former NSW Premier Mike Baird but these people had nothing to do with these ads. As a result, due to loosely knit advertorial guidelines of Meta Platforms, these people’s reputation was also affected. 

Safety on Facebook

ACCC Chair Rod Sims stressed the fact that Meta Platforms should do more when it comes to cryptocurrency-based advertisements. Giving an example of a customer, Sims said that the person lost around $650K due to a scam that was implemented via Facebook. 

In December, Meta announced that it is expanding ad eligibility on Facebook following getting 27 regulatory licenses.

Sims also noted that “cryptocurrency scam ads were still being displayed on Facebook even after public figures around the world had complained that their names and images had been used in similar ads without their consent,” showing that Meta Platforms had little about their users.

Notably, Australian billionaire, Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest, also targeted and sued Facebook for allowing crypto adverts to use his name and identity.