Meta‑themed investment scams rise
New Hampshire’s attorney‑general warned of a rise in investment scams that impersonate Meta, use deepfakes or fake crypto pitches, and trick victims into moving money to fraudulent schemes. Coverage flagged that early high earners with tech familiarity are often targeted, making these scams a growing concern where social‑media trust is weaponized. (wmur.com)
A New Hampshire warning this week says the scam now starts where people scroll: on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, all owned by Meta, with fake investment ads, fake experts, and fake crypto pitches designed to empty real bank accounts. Attorney General John Formella said on April 7 that the playbook includes impersonations, “deepfake” videos, pump-and-dump stock schemes, confidence scams, and fraudulent cryptocurrency offers that pressure people to move money fast. The first hook is usually an ad that looks familiar on purpose. New Hampshire investigators said scammers use names like Cathie Wood, Joe Kernen, and Kevin O’Leary without permission, then promise “insider” access or guaranteed returns. The second move is to get you off the public platform and into a private room. The state says victims are pushed from Facebook or Instagram into WhatsApp or Telegram groups, where the scammers can coach them one by one and avoid public scrutiny. One version is the old pump-and-dump with a new skin. A group hypes a cheap stock or coin, early “profits” make the tipster look smart, and then the organizers sell at the top while everyone else is left holding the drop. Another version is slower and more personal. The New Hampshire Department of Justice says confidence scammers build trust, show fake balances on realistic-looking platforms, and sometimes even allow a small withdrawal before demanding extra “fees” or “taxes” that never lead to a real payout. This is not just one state seeing the same pattern. In June 2025, a bipartisan coalition of 41 attorneys general, including New Hampshire’s, told Meta that fraudulent investment ads on Facebook had already led to thousands of victims losing hundreds of millions of dollars. That coalition letter described the same handoff New Hampshire is warning about now: fake ads on Facebook, then an invitation to a WhatsApp “investment group,” then direct contact from someone pretending to be a professional adviser or analyst. Federal agencies have been saying the same thing in plainer terms. The Federal Trade Commission said in June 2024 that unexpected social-media messages about investing are “almost always” scams, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation says social media is now a common entry point for investment fraud. The technology has improved faster than the lie has changed. The Federal Bureau of Investigation warned in December 2024 that criminals are using generative artificial intelligence to create realistic fake profiles, fake documents, and other convincing material for confidence fraud and investment fraud. The people getting hit are not always beginners. A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority investor alert from December 2025 said it had seen a significant spike in complaints tied to fake “investment groups” on Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp, often involving bad actors posing as registered professionals. New Hampshire’s advice is blunt because the script is so repetitive: if a social-media investment pitch promises guaranteed returns, uses urgency, or leans on a celebrity endorsement or artificial-intelligence video, treat it as a scam and report it to the state Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. (ic3.gov/)
