• The Australian billionaire has accused Facebook of criminal negligence for allowing crypto scams to run under his name on its platform.
• The court hearing will happen next month on March 28 and if found guilty, Facebook might end up paying a heavy fine.

Well, things are certainly not going well for social media giant Facebook. Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest, the Australian billionaire is suing Facebook over scammy crypto ads running on the platform under his name. The billionaire has accused Facebook of breaching Australia’s money-laundering laws.

Andrew Forrest said that Facebook has been knowingly profiting from this “cycle of illegal ads” that it failed to remove. By consulting Attorney-General Michaelia Cash, Forrest is bringing forth these charges under Part 10 of the Commonwealth Criminal Code.

The initial court hearing will happen next month on March 28 at the Western Australian Magistrates court. A committal hearing will follow later in 2022.

The court filing notes that of of the victims lost close to AUD 1 million while defrauding other victims for millions of dollars. However, the lawyers representing the billionaire said that they do not “know the precise number or identities of the individuals defrauded by reason of this vicious scam, the scope of the harm is vast”. The court filing further reads:

These scenarios played out in the underlying scam which used Dr Forrest’s name, likeness, and reputation to find victims, who often reported being swindled after believing Dr Forrest was actually endorsing the investment scheme.

Andrew Forrest – Facebook is criminally reckless

The Aussie billionaire said that he has been spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to distance him from the crypto scams on Facebook, since March 2019. Thus, he calls Facebook “criminally reckless” for its inability to remove fraudulent ads.

The complaint also adds that Facebook’s access to user data has been a leading “contributor to the proliferation of illegal advertisements, “fake news” and other unwanted internet material”.

A spokesperson at Facebook told local publication The Australian that it’s taking a multi-pronged approach to stop these ads leading to crypto scams. But the Australian billionaire notes that Facebook isn’t doing enough at their part despite repeated warnings. Forrest added:

Facebook has shown little appetite to self-regulate or take basic steps to protect Australians from the misuse of its platform by crooks and scammers, so I’ve been left with no other option than to take this action.

If the Australian court finds Facebook guilty, the company might have to pay heavy fees in fine. Besides, it could also lead to Facebook withdrawing its recent decision to allow certain crypto ads. Facebook has been facing major regulatory challenges. The company also decided to pull down its Diem stablecoin project owing to strong regulatory pressure.

Read More: Meta ready to withdraw and sell its Diem stablecoin project following strong regulatory pressure

Meta stock (NASDAQ: FB) tanks 22%

In the aftermarket hours on Wednesday, February 2, the Meta stock (NASDAQ: FB) plunged more than 22 percent. This fall was in reaction to the company reporting its Q4 2021 numbers.

While Facebook announced a major pivot to the Metaverse, it reported stagnant user growth. Furthermore, the company’s launch of the Facebook Reality Labs (FRL) division has turned out to be pricy. In 2021, Meta platforms lost $10.2 billion in their augmented and virtual reality operations.