Meta responds to deepfake celebrity scam pressure by announcing new rules for financial advertisers
Businesses will be required to provide their Australian financial services licence number or declare an exemption. (AP: Jenny Kane)
Meta has bowed to pressure to tackle deep fake images of public figures and celebrities by bringing in new advertising rules to target scammers.
The scams use images of famous people such as David Koch, Gina Rinehart, Robert Irwin and Anthony Albanese, often generated by artificial intelligence (AI), to trick consumers into giving money to fake investment schemes.
In October, the company said they took down 8,000 of these so-called celebrity-bait ads from Facebook and Instagram.
Meta has now taken action to try to close the door on scammers by announcing plans to tighten requirements for ads promoting financial services.
Here's what that means.
Loading...How do fake online celebrity investment scams work?
Deepfakes are lifelike impersonations of real people created by AI.
Scammers create ads to get you to believe the celebrities actually use the investment platforms and make money.
The victim is then asked to sign up to the platform, which looks very realistic, and supply all their personal details.
The scammers will often create a sense of urgency by promoting "investments" with incredible return rates that are only available for a short time.
Former Sunrise host David Koch has long been plagued by scammers using his image on social media.
The ads typically link to a fake media article that includes quotes attributed to Koch endorsing a cryptocurrency or other money-making scheme.
Users are invited to sign up for the scheme and are then contacted by scammers to convince them to deposit funds.
Earlier this year, Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones wrote on X that "Meta needs to step up and do more to stop the proliferation of scammers on its platforms".
In an address to the National Press Club in July, he said social media giants were "dragging their heels" in the fight against the multi-billion-dollar scourge of scams.
"It is a big problem that digital platforms let scammers use their network to target victims.
"It is offensive that they make money from scam ads on their platforms while victims lose.
"Digital platforms have a moral obligation to join the fight as part of their social licence."
What financial ads will be targeted?
Meta says advertisements identifying a range of financial products or services including insurance, mortgages, loans, investment opportunities and credit cards will need verifying.
How will it work?
Once an advertiser is verified, they will need to include their payer and beneficiary information in their ads.
This will be in the form of a "Paid for By" disclaimer that will be visible to all users.
Verified financial services ads will also be available for users to view on the Meta Ad Library while the ad is active.
However, Meta says this may vary depending on the type of advertisement and the market it is targeting.
Meta ANZ managing director Will Easton said the company recognised the impact that finance scams could have on Australian consumers.
"The introduction of financial advertiser verification is an important additional step towards protecting people in Australia from these sophisticated scammers who try to impersonate legitimate financial institutions," Mr Easton said in a statement.
Last month, Meta also began trialling facial recognition technology in ads to detect potential use of fake celebrity endorsements.
When will the restrictions come into place?
The changes will start to roll out to advertisers over the next month.
By February 2025, advertisers will be required to complete the verification process before publishing qualifying ads to audiences in Australia.
However, Meta says the dates may vary.
A fake post alleging Mrs Rinehart has an association with a company that sells shares resulting in an alleged monthly income. (Hancock Prospecting)
How many investment scams have been reported this year?
Between January and September 2024, Scamwatch recorded 5,738 investment scams, totalling more than $135 million in losses.
Approximately one-quarter of these were serviced through social media.
The National Anti-Scam Centre said it had received more than 400 reports of these scams in 2023, including one that saw an Australian man lose $80,000 in cryptocurrency.
Deepfake videos of well-known Australians have been in circulation on Facebook for about two years. (AAP)
Banks welcome the new verification process
Westpac customer and corporate group executive Carolyn McCann says this is a "step in the right direction" from Meta.
"This announcement is a great start from Meta and I'll continue to encourage them to do more to make their sites scam-free," Ms McCann said.
"Only through a united response and continued investment will we put the criminals out of business."
Earlier this year, Ms McCann wrote to Meta about 360 different scams on Facebook that Westpac customers had complained about.
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