U.S. Senators Josh Hawley and Richard Blumenthal sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) urging them to open an investigation into Meta Platforms. The move followed a Reuters report claiming that Meta earns billions from ads promoting scam schemes and prohibited products, including unlicensed gambling sites. We covered this earlier on our Telegram channel.
In their letter to regulators, the senators cite an investigation stating that Meta’s internal projections showed that in 2024 up to 10% of its revenue, roughly $16 billion, could come from illegal advertising.
“The FTC and SEC should immediately open investigations and, if the reports are accurate, take enforcement actions where appropriate to require Meta to return the profits, pay penalties, and agree to stop running such ads,” Hawley and Blumenthal wrote.
The senators argue that Meta has sharply reduced teams responsible for safety and fraud prevention. They also note that Meta’s own internal data suggests its platforms may be tied to a third of all scams in the U.S., totaling more than $50 billion.
“Even a brief look at Meta’s Ad Library at the time of writing shows ads for illegal gambling, payment scams, crypto scams, AI-generated sexual deepfake services, and fake federal benefit offers,” they wrote.
One example cited in the report is an ad claiming that President Donald Trump is giving away $1,000 to food assistance recipients.
Responding to the allegations, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone called the senators’ claims “overstated and inaccurate,” saying the company “aggressively combats fraud” and has reduced user complaints by 58% over the past 18 months.
- More in Google News.
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