Meta is stepping up its efforts to combat fake celebrity investment scams on its platforms in Australia. Beginning in February 2025, the company will require financial advertisers targeting Australian users to undergo a verification process. Businesses must provide their Australian financial services licence number or declare an exemption, while individuals must submit a government-issued ID. The Australian Securities Investment Commission will authenticate these licence numbers to ensure that advertisers are legitimate. Advertisers will also need to verify their business documents and confirm their affiliation with the company by submitting a work email address.
This move comes in response to the rising number of scams on Meta’s platforms that use deepfake images of public figures, such as Martin Lewis, David Koch, and Gina Rinehart, to promote fraudulent investment schemes. In 2024 alone, reported losses from investment scams in Australia reached $135 million, with a significant portion of that amount originating from social media scams. The new verification system is designed to inject friction into the operations of scammers, making it more difficult for them to carry out fraudulent activities.
Meta’s move follows similar initiatives in Taiwan and the UK, where the company has implemented similar restrictions on financial advertising. However, the timing of this decision is particularly noteworthy, as it comes just before the Australian federal government passes its scams prevention framework legislation, which will require digital platforms to verify advertisers. Meta’s director of global threat disruption, David Agranovich, emphasized that the company is prepared for scammers to try to evade detection, but he believes that the new measures will significantly reduce their effectiveness.
In addition to the verification process, Meta has also begun trialing facial recognition technology in advertisements to detect and prevent the use of fake celebrity endorsements. This initiative aims to further safeguard users from falling victim to deceptive ads. The Australian government’s parliamentary committee, which is reviewing the scams prevention framework legislation, is expected to report back at the end of January 2025. Meta’s new verification requirements are part of the broader global push to hold digital platforms accountable for the content they host and protect users from increasing scam threats.
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