As online scams continue to evolve, Meta has ramped up its efforts to combat romance fraud ahead of Valentine’s Day. The social media giant, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has joined the Safer Internet India coalition to collaborate with industry peers and law enforcement agencies to crack down on scams targeting users in India.
Romance scams are a growing concern, where fraudsters exploit dating apps, social media, and messaging platforms to deceive victims. Scammers often impersonate wealthy businesspeople or military personnel to build trust with their targets before requesting money or promoting fraudulent investment schemes.
Meta’s latest research indicates that such scams are becoming more sophisticated, with bad actors leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to create fake profiles and deceptive messages.
To counter these threats, Meta has introduced several safety tools across its platforms:
• Facebook Messenger: Safety Notices now alert users when they are chatting with accounts that exhibit suspicious activity, including those based in different countries. • Instagram: The company is testing similar nudges for teenagers and plans to roll them out to a broader audience soon. • WhatsApp: Users can now silence calls from unknown numbers, preventing unwanted contact from potential scammers.
“Online scams and fraudulent activity are serious issues especially as more and more people come online. Combatting this requires concrete and cooperative measures across the ecosystem led by the industry. The Safer Internet India coalition is a crucial step in fostering cross-industry collaboration to protect Indians from emerging online threats and extends Meta’s goal of actively working with our peers to discuss the latest trends and strategies to prevent, detect and respond to criminal scammers. We’re confident that this initiative will help multiply our collective anti-scam efforts, including driving user awareness and promoting safer digital practices while ensuring that innovation remains responsible and inclusive," said Shivnath Thukral, Vice President and Head of Public Policy, Meta India
Recognising that scammers operate across multiple platforms, Meta has joined Safer Internet India, a coalition that includes telecom companies, fintech firms, and digital service providers. This initiative aims to share insights, detect fraudulent trends, and develop multilingual awareness campaigns to educate users about online safety.
Meta is also stepping up enforcement against fraudulent accounts. In 2024 alone, the company removed over 408,000 scam accounts that primarily targeted users in Australia, the UK, the US, South Korea, and the EU. This year, it has already taken down over 116,000 fake pages and accounts operating from Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, and Cameroon.
To further strengthen security, the company is testing facial recognition technology to detect and remove impersonation accounts posing as public figures.
How to Stay Safe from Romance Scams
Meta has issued the following tips to help users protect themselves: • Be cautious when communicating with strangers online, especially those who claim to be in business or the military. • Avoid sharing personal or financial information with someone you haven’t met in person. • Verify profiles by conducting reverse image searches or checking their activity history. • Report suspicious accounts and messages through Meta’s in-app reporting tools.