The complaint seeks civil monetary penalties for each alleged violation of Rhode Island law, restitution for affected consumers and the recovery of profits that Meta al…
Rhode Island sues Meta over scam ads
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms in Providence Superior Court, alleging the company allowed widespread scam advertising across Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp while profiting from it. The state claims Meta told users it was tackling fraud even as such ads reached consumers, including vulnerable groups. The complaint seeks civil monetary penalties for each alleged violation of Rhode Island law, restitution for affected consumers, and recovery of profits Meta allegedly earned unlawfully. It also asks the court to compel Meta to address scam ads rather than benefit from them. This is the first scam-related lawsuit against Meta by a US state, following a similar action by Santa Clara County in California in May.
Meta rejects the claims
Meta called the lawsuit unfounded and said it will contest it. Spokesperson Andy Stone said the attorney general declined to engage with the company on its consumer protection efforts and accused him of hiring an out-of-state private law firm to prepare a case that ignored existing anti-fraud measures. Meta said it removed more than 159 million scam ads in the past year and rolled out tools including alerts on suspicious friend requests, expanded advertiser verification, and WhatsApp warnings on risky device-linking requests. The company added that it works with law enforcement to disrupt scam networks.
Why it matters for businesses
The complaint cites internal documents estimating Meta displayed roughly 15 billion higher-risk scam ads daily, and that fraudulent e-commerce, dubious health products and other banned marketing generated about 10% of Meta's 2024 revenue. Rhode Island also alleged Meta's AI ad tools helped scammers optimise fraudulent campaigns, and that suspected fraudulent advertisers were sometimes charged extra instead of being blocked. For Indian advertisers, agencies and compliance teams, the case signals rising scrutiny of platf…
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