Meta: Mark Zuckerberg Probed by Democrats Over Crypto Scams

Mark Zuckerberg has been questioned over his company’s efforts to combat “prevalent” crypto scams on social media platforms.
According to the Democrats led by the chairman of the Banking Committee and Elizabeth Warren, these scams are costing consumers more than $417 million.

On Friday 09, concerned Democrats sent a letter to Mark Zuckerberg concerning what they termed as prevalent crypto scams. According to these democrats, Zuckerberg and his social media platforms are not doing nearly enough to protect unsuspecting users. The group of Senators who are calling on Meta to step up their game includes the chairman of the Banking Committee Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Bob Menendez of New Jersey, and long-term crypto critic Elizabeth Warren of Massachusettes.

The Senators noted in their letter to Mark Zuckerberg that about 49% of fraud reports to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC ) involving cryptocurrency originated from Social Media. It is important to note that Mark Zuckerberg through Meta controls Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. As such, the Senators added;

While crypto scams are prevalent across social media, several of Meta’s sites are particularly popular hunting grounds for scammers,

In a call to action, the Senators have requested that Meta provide details on how it is proactively finding and removing fraudsters from its platform. Additionally, it is expected to explain how it verifies crypto ads on its platforms. Finally, the Senators want to know how and to want extent Meta works with law enforcement to track fraudsters.

Romantic Crypto Scams Blossom on Social Media

The Senator’s letter to Mark Zuckerberg comes amidst raising concerns about a new crypto scam prevailing on social media. Dubbed romantic crypto scams, the scam involves initiating a romantic relationship between the fraudster and an unsuspecting social media user with little knowledge about cryptocurrencies.

Commonly, the fraudster will create a fake account on social media. They will use personal pictures of beautiful persons (taken off the internet) and will use fake images to portray an affluent lifestyle.

After initiating a romantic relationship, the fraudster slowly introduces the user to cryptocurrencies and how to invest. With the scam running for months, the fraudster is keen to teach the victim about crypto and might even introduce them to legit trading platforms. However, once the victim has fully trusted the fraudster, the fraudster will take advantage and direct the victim to a new “more exciting” platform. This platform will be a well-placed trap where the victim will be swindled of everything they hold.