KUALA LUMPUR – Tech giant Meta must provide a full explanation regarding a Reuters report that alleges 10% of its earnings come from ads promoting illegal activities such as scams and online gambling.
Communication Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil expressed concern over the report, which suggests that Meta generates revenue from advertisements related to unlawful activities in violation of Malaysian law.
“The Reuters report is quite detailed, citing figures that appear to be based on internal Meta documents,” he said during a press conference following the Cabinet meeting today.
“If true, this is very concerning as it implies that some of Meta’s revenue is derived from illegal activities that break the law, including in Malaysia,” Fahmi added.
The social media giant internally forecasted late last year that around 10% of its total revenue – or approximately US$16 billion (RM67 billion) – would come from advertisements promoting scams and banned goods, according to confidential company documents.
The documents, which were reviewed by Reuters, reveal that for at least three years, Meta failed to adequately address the surge in ads promoting fraudulent e-commerce, illegal online gambling, banned medical products, and investment scams. These ads, visible on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, have put the company’s billions of users at risk.
A December 2024 document indicates that Meta estimates 15 billion “high-risk” scam ads are shown to users every day, with this category generating about $7 (RM29bil) billion annually.
These ads typically exhibit clear signs of fraud, yet Meta’s automated systems only remove ads when fraud is predicted with 95% certainty, according to the documents. If fraud is suspected but not confirmed to such a degree, Meta charges higher ad rates as a disincentive to suspected scammers.
Meta’s algorithms, designed to personalise user experiences, often exacerbate the problem by showing users more scam ads if they have clicked on similar ones in the past.
The internal documents further highlight Meta’s struggle with balancing the need for strict fraud enforcement and the desire to preserve its business interests. The company’s financial motivations are laid bare as its internal estimates suggest that 10.1% of its revenue in 2024 could stem from prohibited ads.
Despite this, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone defended the company’s actions, claiming that the figures presented by Reuters were “selective” and that the company’s actual scam-related revenue is lower than projected.
He also stressed that Meta has made substantial progress in combatting fraud, citing a 58% reduction in user-reported scam ads in the past 18 months and the removal of 134 million scam ads in 2025.
However, other documents reveal that Meta’s own research suggests its platforms are deeply embedded in the global fraud economy. One such presentation from May 2025 estimated that Meta’s platforms are linked to a third of all successful scams in the United States.
As the spokesperson for the Madani government, Fahmi noted that, to date, Meta has yet to provide a satisfactory response to the report. The company has only denied the figures in question, claiming they were taken out of context.
“This response is not adequate. I regret that this shocking report emerged yesterday, and we will be scrutinising it closely. It will serve as the basis for us to call Meta in for a full explanation,” Fahmi said.
The Reuters report revealed that Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, projected that 10% of its total revenue in 2024—approximately US$16 billion—would come from advertisements promoting fraudulent and prohibited products.
Internal Meta documents, previously undisclosed, show that the social media giant failed to identify and stop ads exposing billions of users on its platforms to e-commerce scams, illegal online gambling, and the sale of prohibited medical products.
One document, dated December 2024, states that Meta is currently distributing an average of 15 billion “higher-risk” ads showing clear signs of fraud to users across its platforms.
Regarding this issue, Fahmi also expressed dissatisfaction with Meta’s content removal process, which he described as slow.
“We have found that each request for content removal submitted by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) takes about 30 to 45 minutes,” he said.
“From January 1 to October 15, 2024, MCMC spent an estimated total of 22.2 years working on submissions to Meta for the removal of scam and online gambling content,” Fahmi explained.
He also pointed out that once the Online Safety Act (ONSA) comes into force, social media platforms will be required to ensure that harmful content, including scams and gambling, is no longer accessible in Malaysia.
“Failure to comply will result in legal action,” he added. – November 7, 2025