Santa Clara County in California has filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms, accusing the tech giant of knowingly profiting from fraudulent advertisements. The suit alleges that Meta generates approximately $7 billion annually from scam ads, which it fails to adequately block.

According to Santa Clara County Counsel Tony LoPresti, Meta’s sophisticated AI tools target “vulnerable consumers” with scams including fake financial products, cryptocurrency schemes, bogus medical cures, and celebrity impersonations. The county claims Meta both “facilitates and monetises” deception through its ad moderation practices.

California residents reported over $2.5 billion in losses to scammers in 2024, with seniors disproportionately affected. The lawsuit is filed on behalf of all California residents, citing Meta’s headquarters in Santa Clara County as the basis for jurisdiction.

Meta spokesperson Andy Stone rejected the allegations, stating the company “aggressively fights scams” and removed 159 million scam ads last year. However, a 2025 Reuters investigation revealed that Meta only bans advertisers it is 95% certain are fraudulent, while charging suspected scammers below that threshold a premium to continue running ads.

This lawsuit adds to Meta’s mounting legal challenges. In March, a California jury found Meta liable for designing addictive features that harmed a young user’s mental health, awarding $4.2 million in damages. Separately, a New Mexico jury ruled Meta failed to protect children from predators.

The Consumer Federation of America also filed a lawsuit last week, accusing Meta of prioritizing profits over user safety. Santa Clara County’s suit emphasizes that “we cannot allow a tech company as powerful as Meta to continue perpetrating a worldwide scheme to deceive consumers.”

Source: www.aljazeera.com