The reactive approach taken by the world’s biggest online platforms to tackle fraudulent adverts allows harmful scams to slip through the net, Which? research suggests.
43% of scam victims conned by an advert they saw online, via a search engine or social media ad, said they didn’t report the scam to the platform hosting it, according to a Which? survey.
Worryingly, 51% of 1,870 search engine users we surveyed said they didn’t even know how to report dodgy ads that appear in their search listings.
And 35% of 1,630 social media users said they didn’t know how to report a suspicious advert they’d seen on social media.
Consumer group Which? conducted a survey of 2,000 UK adults earlier this year
34 per cent who reported a Google scam ad said it wasn t taken down by the firm
And 26 per cent who reported a scam advert on Facebook said it wasn t removed
Both firms take a reactive rather than proactive approach to fraudulent content
Consumer watchdog blasts platforms for onerous reporting mechanisms
Richard Speed Mon 26 Apr 2021 // 13:45 UTC Share
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UK consumer watchdog Which? has found that ad giants Google and Facebook are failing to remove online scam ads even after victims report them.
A third of those reporting scam ads to Google found the same offending ads still present, while the figure was a quarter for antisocial media site Facebook.
In terms of gullibility, of those who told Which? they d fallen victim to a malicious ad, just over a quarter were duped by something on Facebook, 19 per cent got caught through Google adverts, and a mere 3 per cent were tricked through Twitter.
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While Adam French, Which? Consumer Rights Expert, added: The vaccine roll out is just the latest hook that fraudsters are using to exploit the pandemic for their own financial gain. You should never share personal or financial information with any unsolicited communication, like emails, texts or phone calls, and don t follow any links - scammers will try to take advantage of the current uncertainty by any means possible. The government must now prioritise legislative options to stem the rising tide of scams across the UK and prevent more innocent people from falling victim to these crimes.
Action Fraud on their website offers advice on how to spot a coronavirus vaccine scam.
To give may be better than to receive but to receive can sometimes be rather underwhelming. Spare a thought for those whose presents included a used potato peeler or a second-hand bra.