A major Reuters investigation has revealed that Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, earned over billion in advertising revenue from Chinese advertisers in 2024 alone. This massive income represents more than 10% of Meta's global revenue, despite Facebook and other Meta platforms being banned in China for public use.
However, internal Meta documents show a dark side: more than billion of this China ad revenue came from scam ads, illegal gambling promotions, pornography content, and other banned advertisements. Experts highlight that around 25% of scam and prohibited ads on Meta platforms originate from China, making it the top “scam exporting nation” for Facebook scams and Instagram fraud.
Even though Meta platforms like Facebook and Instagram are blocked in China, the government allows Chinese companies to run targeted ads to international users. This has fueled a boom in Meta ad fraud, with Chinese scam ads flooding the platforms.
In response to growing concerns, Meta formed a special anti-fraud team in 2024 focused on Chinese advertising scams. This team successfully reduced problematic banned ads from 19% to 9% of China revenue in just months, cracking down on Facebook scam ads and Instagram illegal promotions.
But the effort was short-lived. Internal documents indicate that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg intervened with an “Integrity Strategy pivot,” leading to the team being asked to “pause” and eventually disbanded. Soon after, Meta lifted restrictions on new Chinese ad agencies, and scam ad revenue climbed back to about 16% of China advertising income.
Meta spokesperson Andy Stone claimed the China anti-fraud team was always temporary and that Zuckerberg instructed teams to “redouble efforts” against global scams, not just in China. Meta also states it removed over 46 million Chinese business ads in the past 18 months and stopped working with violating agencies.
Despite these claims, the Reuters report raises serious questions about Meta ad policies, Facebook advertising fraud, and how big tech revenue priorities may overlook user protection from online scams, illegal gambling ads, and banned content.
This Meta scam ads scandal highlights ongoing issues in digital advertising, social media fraud, and the challenges of regulating Chinese-origin ads on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Users are advised to stay vigilant against scam advertisements and report suspicious Meta ads.
For the latest on Meta news, Facebook updates, Instagram scandals, and big tech advertising controversies, stay informed as regulators scrutinize Meta revenue from scams.
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