Democratic senators from the US Senate have reportedly questioned Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg about the company’s procedures for dealing with cryptocurrency scams occurring on its various platforms.
Senators Robert Menendez, Sherrod Brown, Elizabeth Warren, Dianne Feinstein, Bernie Sanders, and Cory Booker reportedly made a call to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Friday to ask him what steps his company might take to identify cryptocurrency scams, work with law enforcement, and help fraud victims. Currently, Facebook, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram are under Meta’s authority.
According to sources, the group of senators stated, “Based on recent allegations of frauds on other social media platforms and apps, we are worried that Meta provides a breeding ground for bitcoin fraud that does serious harm to consumers.”
The lawmakers highlighted an FTC report from June that described social media and cryptocurrency as “combustible ingredients for fraud.” According to the commission, social media networks were the source of about half of the $1 billion in cryptocurrency-related frauds in 2021, the majority of which were centered on investments:
“Nearly four out of every ten dollars reported lost to a fraud originating on social media was lost in crypto, far more than any other payment method. The top platforms identified in these reports were Instagram (32%), Facebook (26%), WhatsApp (9%) and Telegram (7%).”
The Democratic senators also requested that Meta provide scam alerts in languages other than English. According to a spokeswoman for Meta, Andy Stone, the social media company expended “considerable resources to detect and prevent scams.” By October 24, the MPs want Zuckerberg to respond with specific details.
In a similar manner, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation focused on cryptocurrency fraud in a July advisory, alerting users to applications that impersonate trustworthy businesses by utilizing their logos and other identifying details to commit fraud.
Additionally, many unwary individuals have been duped on Twitter and YouTube by frauds including hacked accounts, imitation websites, and fraudulent cryptocurrency projects and airdrops.
