Reuters, citing leaked internal documents from Meta, reported that the social media giant has developed special instructions for its employees on how to make fraudulent ads on Facebook and Instagram «unsearchable» by law enforcement.
Reuters, citing leaked internal documents from Meta, reported that the social media giant has developed special instructions for its employees on how to make fraudulent ads on Facebook and Instagram «unsearchable» by law enforcement.
The journalists analyzed a case that took place in Japan: last year, Japanese regulators tried to combat fraudulent schemes on Facebook and Instagram, and the company Meta, instead of fully assisting law enforcement, tried to make problematic advertising more difficult to detect.
The publication cites evidence of how Meta employees manipulated data in the «ad library» to «make themselves look good to regulators.»
«Meta has studied search queries in its Ad Library and worked to reduce the detection of problematic ads. Documents reviewed by Reuters show internal discussions of these efforts,» the article says.
The search results cleanup demonstrated in Japan was so successful that, as the documents show, Meta added the tactic to an «overall global action plan» it deployed against regulatory oversight in other markets, including the United States, Europe, India, Australia, Brazil, and Thailand.
This action plan outlines Meta’s strategy to delay regulators and delay advertiser review.
Meanwhile, Meta spokesman Andy Stone told Reuters in a statement that the removal of fraudulent ads from the library was not intended to mislead regulators and law enforcement.
As dev.ua previously wrote, internal Meta documents reviewed by Reuters show that the company predicted that 10% of its revenue in 2024, or about $16 billion, would come from advertising fraudulent schemes and prohibited goods.
