It is a known fact that the world is becoming increasingly digital in the light of technological developments. Social media, where billions of people spend hours, is among the digital platforms that take the lead in this situation. However, the rapid popularity of such channels causes some negative situations to occur, as can be expected.
Increasing cases of fraud and theft are some of them. Now, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has shared the data collected on the fraud cases that took place on social media in 2021. In the results, it was observed that the fraudsters on these platforms stole hundreds of millions of dollars in 2021 alone.
$770 million stolen
According to the report released by the FTC, more than 95,000 people were scammed on social media in 2021. In addition, it was among the statements that the fraudsters stole more than $ 770 million from these people. The FTC states that this number is $258 million in 2020; that is, in 2021, this number has more than doubled, revealing the terrible situation that has occurred.
In the shared data, fraud cases related to cryptocurrencies were also mentioned. In the results, it was also stated that 285 million dollars were stolen due to crypto currency counterfeiting. This attracted a lot of attention, accounting for more than a third of the 770 million stolen in total. In addition, it was also among the news that the concept of ‘online friendship’ became more and more widespread, and the number of ‘romantic scammers’ increased, and therefore millions of dollars were stolen from Facebook and Instagram.
In its latest statements, the FTC emphasized the “fake advertisements” that cause fraud cases on social media platforms and warned about targeted advertising. In addition, it was emphasized by experts that users should pay attention to their privacy settings and be careful about messages asking for money by offering offers such as crypto money and gift cards.
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