Meta to Enforce Verification for Financial Advertisers to Curb Celebrity Scam Ads in Australia

Meta has announced a new verification requirement for financial advertisers, aimed at tackling fake celebrity investment scams targeting Australians on Facebook and Instagram. The enforcement of this new requirement will commence in early February and is anticipated to take approximately six weeks to complete.

Under the new rules, advertisers aiming to promote financial services must verify details about the beneficiaries and payers. Businesses will need to provide their Australian financial services license number or declare an exemption, while individuals must present a government-issued ID. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) will authenticate the provided license numbers.

This requirement will apply to advertisers worldwide who target Australian users on Meta's platforms. The advertisers will be required to verify their business by submitting business documents, and the individuals responsible for the verification must confirm their employment with the business, for example, by providing a work email address.

In a move similar to Facebook's approach to political ads, financial ads will require a disclaimer, enabling users to see information about who is behind them.

According to Australia’s National Anti-Scam Centre, investment scams in Australia resulted in reported losses of $135 million in 2024 by the end of September, with $35 million attributed to social media scams.

In October, Meta reported the removal of 8,000 "celebrity-bait" ads from Facebook and Instagram. In the same month, the company announced the implementation of facial recognition technology to detect fake celebrity endorsements, beginning its trial phase last month.