Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest has filed a criminal complaint against Facebook, claiming that the social network has taken part in criminal practices. He accused Facebook is “criminally careless” in its handling of user data.
Scam adverts featuring the image of the Australian billionaire were the reason behind the criminal complaint filed against Facebook. He stressed Facebook failed to prevent scam ads that used his image.
Forrest also claims that Facebook violated anti-money laundering rules in Australia by disseminating cryptocurrency scams. He said that it was the first time a criminal prosecution against Facebook had been brought, the social media giant on a global scale.
“We are dedicated to removing such groups [scammers] from our platform,” Facebook’s parent company Meta, responded in a statement.
Dr Forrest, who is also Fortescue Metals’ Chairman, has accused Facebook of being “criminally careless” in not doing more to stop the scam adverts that initially surfaced in early 2019. There are fake ads displayed that fraud people in making fake investments that promise huge returns. Forrest said that con artists capitalise on his and other celebrities’ fame, through these fraudulent ads. Despite Facebook’s restriction on these types of advertisements, plenty continue to surface.
Earlier this year, Dr Forrest stated he had sent an open letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, imploring him to do more. The mining tycoon stated in a statement on Thursday that he was concerned about “innocent Australians being defrauded by clickbait advertising on social media.”
In this case, “I’m acting for Australians, but this is occurring around the globe.”
The Magistrate’s Court of Western Australia will begin hearing the case on March 28. Facebook may be subject to fines or required to revise its advertising if the campaign is effective.
They have filed a civil case against Facebook in the US state of California, where the social network is based.
According to the Australian tabloid, Forrest is suing Facebook for “knowingly profiting from this loop of illicit adverts.”
According to court records cited by the newspaper, one victim in Australia had lost $670,000 (£495,000; A$940,000) because of a fraudulent ad involving Dr Forrest.
Scam advertising breached the social media company’s regulations, Meta stated in a statement to the media.
According to a Meta spokesman, “We take a multifaceted approach to stop these ads. We work not just to detect and reject the ads themselves but also block advertisers from our services and, sometimes, take court action to enforce our policies”.
