BeNewz
Related Articles
BeNewz Report
LONDON: Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has been profiting heavily from fraudulent advertising, according to internal documents obtained by Reuters. The documents reveal that Meta internally estimated it would generate about 10% of its 2024 revenue—roughly $16 billion—from ads promoting scams, illegal gambling, and banned medical products.
The documents, which span from 2021 to 2025, paint a picture of a company aware of the scale of abuse on its platforms yet reluctant to take strong measures that could hurt its revenue. A December 2024 report cited in the cache shows that Meta displayed an estimated 15 billion “high-risk” scam ads daily—ads containing clear indicators of fraud. Another document noted that Meta earned roughly $7 billion annually from such fraudulent campaigns.
According to Reuters, many of these scam ads originated from advertisers flagged by Meta’s own risk-detection systems. However, the company only permanently bans accounts if its algorithms are at least 95% confident that the advertiser is fraudulent. For advertisers who fall below that threshold but are still considered suspicious, Meta imposes higher ad prices—a strategy described internally as “penalty bids.”
The documents also indicate that users who click on scam ads are more likely to be shown additional fraudulent content, due to Meta’s ad-personalization algorithms that optimize ad delivery based on user engagement.
In response, Meta spokesman Andy Stone told Reuters that the documents “present a selective view that distorts Meta’s approach to fraud and scams.” He said the 10% estimate was “rough and overly inclusive,” adding that the actual figure was lower because it counted “many legitimate ads.”
Stone claimed Meta has made progress in combating scams, saying the company reduced user reports of fraudulent ads globally by 58% over the past 18 months and removed more than 134 million scam ads so far in 2025.
Still, other documents reviewed by Reuters show Meta internally acknowledged that scams have become a core part of the digital fraud ecosystem. A May 2025 safety division presentation estimated that Meta’s platforms were linked to nearly one-third of all successful scams in the United States. An April 2025 internal review concluded bluntly: “It is easier to advertise scams on Meta platforms than on Google.”
The revelations come as regulators in the United States and Europe increase scrutiny of Meta’s advertising practices. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is investigating Meta’s role in hosting ads for financial scams, while the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority reported last year that Meta’s platforms were linked to 54% of all payment-related scam losses in Britain in 2023—more than twice as many as all other social media companies combined.
The documents also show Meta anticipated regulatory fines of up to $1 billion for scam-related violations but concluded such penalties would be minor compared to the billions earned from these ads. A November 2024 report noted that Meta generated $3.5 billion every six months from scam ads posing as major brands, celebrities, or financial institutions.
Rather than implementing a rapid crackdown, internal strategy papers from late 2024 proposed a gradual approach, focusing enforcement only in countries where regulators were likely to act. Meta executives reportedly agreed to reduce scam-related revenue from 10.1% in 2024 to 7.3% by the end of 2025, and further to 6% by 2026.
Internal records also detail the company’s “Scammiest Scammers” list—a weekly internal report highlighting advertisers with the most user complaints. Yet Reuters found that some of those advertisers remained active for months afterward, including accounts promoting unlicensed online casinos.
Experts say the revelations underscore how Meta’s profit model is at odds with its public claims about user safety. “If regulators wouldn’t tolerate banks profiting from fraud, they shouldn’t tolerate it in tech,” said Sandeep Abraham, a former Meta safety investigator now running Risky Business Solutions.
Meta’s internal struggle to balance ad revenue against fraud prevention has intensified as the company pours billions into artificial intelligence infrastructure, including a $72 billion capital expenditure plan for 2025. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has reassured investors that the company’s advertising business will continue to bankroll its AI ambitions.
The documents reveal that Meta limits how much revenue its fraud-enforcement teams are allowed to risk. In early 2025, internal guidelines capped enforcement actions that could cost more than 0.15% of total company revenue—about $135 million of the $90 billion Meta earned in the first half of the year.
Critics say such limits show that Meta’s priority remains profit, not protection. Despite global outcry, the company continues to face allegations that its platforms have become breeding grounds for online scams—from fraudulent crypto schemes to impersonation of public figures.
As regulators worldwide tighten oversight, Meta’s own records indicate that it may finally be forced to confront the true cost of its most lucrative but dangerous revenue stream.
