Facebook users are being warned to watch out for ads designed to cash in on New Zealand’s economic gloom.
Netsafe chief executive Brent Carey said dodgy Facebook ads were a long-standing problem and new versions, which claim that businesses are closing down because of conditions in various parts of the country, for example, were the latest iteration.
Often these businesses were not based in New Zealand if they existed at all.
Multiple businesses with different names all claiming to be based in Wellington were advertising with identical text, which included a claim that the owners had “sacrificed dreams and comforts” to keep the business going but “the economic demands of modern times have exceeded our strength”.
Carey said it was common for the scam ads to say a business was closing or offer what seemed to be a large discount.
“Because of the cost of living crisis it seems there are more of them around.”
He said ads “closing down” claims were designed to encourage people to act quickly.
People were more wary of scammers now, he said, but they had also become more professional.
“There is lower cost to produce now. Technology is helping them look more legitimate with speed and pace.”
He said people should not think there was safety in an ad having been paid for.
People could report dodgy ads to Facebook to ask for them to be “deplatformed”. They could also contact Netsafe for help having content removed he said.
But Facebook could do more, he said. It could use its algorithm better and do more screening to avoid dodgy advertisements appearing in the first place. He said it could also make the reporting process simpler, and get back to people after they had made a report about an advertisement.
People should also check the details of businesses they were thinking of purchasing from, including that there was clear contact information and what the process for returns was. They should also check the domain name was legitimate.
Facebook owner Meta did not respond to a request for comment.
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