Judge Allows Andrew Forrest’s Lawsuit Against Meta for Crypto Ad Scams to Proceed
Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest’s lawsuit against Meta over cryptocurrency ad scams featuring his image has been given the green light by a US judge. U.S. District Court Judge Casey Pitts ruled on Monday that Forrest’s claims of negligence against Meta can move forward despite the company’s attempts to have the case dismissed. The ruling also allows Forrest to argue that Meta was complicit in the creation of the fraudulent crypto campaign, as the ads were developed using software provided by Meta. The judge’s judgment stated that Meta profited more from the ads featuring Forrest’s likeness, which is enough to support the claim of misappropriation in Meta’s favor.
Forrest discovered in 2019 that his name and image were being used to fraudulently promote cryptocurrencies to Meta users. He claims that over 1,000 ads ran between April and November of last year, resulting in millions of dollars in losses for victims. Some of these ads included fake testimonials from investors and manipulated “deepfake” videos of Forrest. Although Meta initially promised to take action against the imposter pages, many of the ads are still active.
Meta has largely shifted responsibility for the ads to third-party users who create them, but the company has expressed sympathy for those affected. In April, Forrest’s criminal charges against Meta in relation to the crypto scheme were dropped due to insufficient evidence. However, Judge Pitts’ ruling could allow Forrest to establish Meta’s liability in the running of the crypto ads. Forrest, with a net worth of $16.5 billion, sees this ruling as a strategic victory in holding Meta accountable.