New York Attorney General Letitia James issued a warning on April 6 to New Yorkers about the rise of fraudulent investment schemes spreading across Meta platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. James said scammers are increasingly using deceptive ads and deepfake technology to lure people into high-risk scams that aim to steal their savings.
The alert comes as online investment fraud becomes more sophisticated, posing risks to everyday investors who may be targeted by pump-and-dump schemes, trust scams, and fraudulent cryptocurrency offers. These tactics exploit trusted names and new technologies in order to convince victims to part with large sums of money.
“Scammers are using social media to exploit the names of trusted financial leaders and celebrities with the goal of stealing the hard-earned savings of New Yorkers,” James said. “From fake investment platforms to celebrity endorsements generated by deepfakes and fraudulent cryptocurrencies, these schemes are becoming increasingly sophisticated. I urge everyone to stay vigilant, distrust any investment ad on social media, and remember: if an investment seems too good to be true, it probably is a scam. Any suspicious ad or offer should be reported to my office.”
James outlined how common scams work: in pump-and-dump schemes, scammers use misleading ads featuring well-known figures without consent—such as Cathie Wood or Kevin O’Leary—to entice victims into buying low-value stocks or cryptocurrencies before artificially inflating prices and selling off at a profit while victims lose money. Trust scams involve building relationships with targets through professional-looking but fake websites or apps; initial small investments appear profitable before larger losses occur when withdrawals become impossible due to fabricated fees.
To help protect themselves from such threats on social media platforms—which can host billions of fraudulent ads daily—James advised New Yorkers not only remain skeptical about guarantees of risk-free returns but also verify credentials through independent sources like BrokerCheck from FINRA. She encouraged consulting trusted legal or financial professionals before investing and being wary of requests for cryptocurrency payments or moving conversations off mainstream sites onto encrypted apps like WhatsApp or Telegram.
The Attorney General’s office operates as a public law enforcement agency for New York according to its official website. It promotes social justice through civil rights enforcement and consumer advocacy according to the official website, protects residents by upholding consumer protections according to the official website, addresses local legal issues via regional offices according to the official website, provides services such as fraud investigations and tenant dispute mediation according to the official website, and is headed by Letitia James according to the official website.
James urged anyone who believes they have been victimized by these types of scams on Meta platforms—or who has seen suspicious activity—to report it online or call her office at 1 (800) 771-7755.
