US Virgin Islands sues Meta over scam ads and child safety failures
The US Virgin Islands sued Meta, alleging the company knowingly profits from scam advertisements and fails to protect children on its platforms. Internal documents reportedly show Meta expected 10% of 2024 revenue from fraudulent ads and uses high algorithmic thresholds before blocking suspected scammers.
What happened
The attorney general of the US Virgin Islands filed a lawsuit in Superior Court on St. Croix accusing Meta of deliberately profiting from advertisements for scams and failing to protect users, including children, on Facebook and Instagram.
The lawsuit cites internal Meta documents reported by Reuters showing the company projected that 10% of its 2024 revenue, approximately $16 billion, would come from ads for scams, illegal gambling and banned products. The lawsuit also states that Meta does not block advertisers suspected of scams unless its algorithms are 95% certain the marketer is engaging in fraud.
Reported impact
The lawsuit alleges Meta knowingly exposes users to fraud and harm to maximize user engagement and revenue, and repeatedly misleads the public about its efforts to protect children and adults on its platforms despite failing to implement its own safety policies.
Index analysis
Meta's advertising moderation system relies on algorithmic certainty thresholds that set a high bar for blocking suspected scammers, allowing fraudulent content to remain on the platform.
Governance controls
Meta stated it aggressively fights fraud and scams, noting that scam reports from users have fallen by half over 18 months. The company denied allegations of failing to protect consumers, calling them baseless.
Classification
Sources and evidence
Sources not yet published
This record was researched and written by the Index from original reporting. Its sources are still being verified by an editor, and they are listed here once that check is complete. Until then the record carries no reviewer.