Westpac CEO Calls For Meta And Other Social Media Giants To Take Tougher Action In Financial Fraud Prevention

Australia’s Westpac Banking Corp‘s CEO has urged social media companies like Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) to play a more active role in preventing online scams, citing the increasing threat to consumers.

Call For Stricter Action On Scams

At a meeting of the Australian British Chamber of Commerce in Sydney, Anthony Miller emphasized the need for social media companies to take more significant steps in curbing online scams, reported Reuters.

Miller said the bank cannot tackle the rising consumer threat on its own. He pointed out that Westpac has spent more than $333 million over the past five years on scam and fraud prevention, including advanced detection tools and customer-protection systems. Still, he emphasized that others in the ecosystem, especially social media platforms, must step up to better protect Australians, according to the report.

This call for social media giants to take responsibility for online scams is not a new one. Earlier in November, Westpac's fraud chief Ben Young warned that this growing practice, known as muling, is being enabled by online groups that openly trade such accounts, reported The Daily Telegraph.

Scammers are using Facebook Marketplace to buy Australian bank accounts, often from people tricked through romance scams or from individuals willing to sell unused accounts, allowing criminals to mask their identities and transactions.

See Also: Michael Burry Says Fed’s New Treasury Buying Plan Shows US Banks Are Weaker Than They Look: ‘Not A Sign Of Strength But A Sign Of Fragility’

Meta’s $16 Billion Scam Ads Projection

In October 2024, UK-based fintech company Revolut urged Meta to share the costs of reimbursing fraud victims, arguing that tech platforms bear no responsibility in reimbursing victims, thus lacking an incentive to tackle the issue.

Notably, leaked internal documents, last month, revealed that Meta had projected a revenue of approximately $16 billion from scam advertisements and banned goods in 2024, accounting for nearly 10% of its total revenue. The documents suggested that Meta displayed an estimated 15 billion “higher risk” scam ads daily.

In another development, Australia has become the first country to ban children under 16 from major social media platforms, forcing apps like TikTok, YouTube, a subsidiary a Alphabet Inc.’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google, Meta’s Instagram, Facebook, and Elon Musk's X to block millions of young users. The new law, effective Wednesday, requires platforms to bar underage accounts or face fines of up to AUD 49.5 million ($33 million).

READ NEXT:

• Bernie Sanders Says Mark Zuckerberg’s Louisiana Data Center Will Use 3X More Electricity Than All Of New Orleans: ‘Fight Back Against Billionaires’

Image via Shutterstock

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.