2024-03-16 12:57:22
The Facebook platform in the United States recently witnessed fraudulent operations of a new kind that targeted businessmen, the rich, and stock market investors, and robbed them of millions of dollars.
Many American investors have been subjected to fraud by impersonating themselves and providing advice to other investors through fake advertisements, which led to them losing millions of dollars, according to the Wall Street Journal.
In one such operation, fraudsters impersonated billionaire hedge fund manager and finance mogul Bill Ackman on Facebook and lured hapless investors into stock market scams, pretending to be Ackman, while the latter was powerless to stop them.
Meanwhile, Ackman’s company, Pershing Square, found more than 90 different ads impersonating him.
Pershing Square spokesman Fran McGill said many of the ads remained visible for weeks after the company reported them to Facebook.
He also stated that one ad promised 125% annual returns, another a 25% return in a week, and asked victims to “hold these three stocks and you will be a millionaire.”
Once each of these fake ads was removed, others appeared on the platform.
The ads lure victims to join WhatsApp groups to get stock tips from supposed partners of big-name investors.
For its part, the Securities Industry Regulatory Authority issued a warning on January 11 that it “has witnessed a recent significant increase in investor complaints as a result of recommendations made by fraudulent ‘investment groups’ promoted through social media.”
The Federal Trade Commission, which monitors deceptive business practices in the United States, said that reported fraud losses tripled between 2019 and 2023 to reach $2.7 billion.
On February 28, a group of nine fraud victims sent a message to Facebook containing details of 21 reports of fraudulent advertisements to Facebook in January and February.
In turn, Meta, the parent company of Facebook, said in September 2021 that it has 40,000 people, including external contractors, working on safety and security issues, and that Facebook uses artificial intelligence to block fake accounts.
But some experts say such efforts have since declined amid several rounds of job cuts at Meta.
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