Paid-for scam advertising is thriving across social media with risky investment adverts putting UK consumers of risk of fraud.
The most common (25%) investment products advertised were property related, while one in five (22%) were for cryptoassets — both cryptocurrencies and NFTs, according to consumer group Which?
In most cases, both of these products will be unregulated. One in 10 (12%) investment products advertised were unclear — they offered high returns without clarifying how those returns would be obtained.
Which? also found a small number of adverts for binary options, a form of trading banned in the UK since 2019. The FCA has previously warned that any firm offering binary options services is probably unauthorised or a scam.
The consumer body’s analysis identified 89 adverts with three or more red flags, such as a no risk warning or a claim that returns are guaranteed, amongst others, of which 23 had five or more red flags.
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Potentially misleading adverts often promised massive, risk-free and speedy returns, playing on consumers’ fears of missing out on opportunities, Which? warned.
One collection of adverts highlighted how repeat offenders persistently post dodgy adverts on Meta (META) owned Facebook and Instagram.
The adverts focused on a piece of software called “Tesler”…
