Meta said Wednesday that it's launching a new suite of tools to tackle today's social media scams on WhatsApp, Facebook and Messenger. These tools will be tackling fraud problems plaguing social platforms, such as the alarming number of people falling for fake celeb-bait profiles. Meta says it removed over 159 million scam ads in 2025.
A Meta representative didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
The latest scams use plenty of AI-generated content to create fake profiles and even fake websites, so it's no surprise Meta is employing its own AI tools to protect people.
WhatsApp warnings
WhatsApp's new protections add popups. Meta
First up is the global chat app WhatsApp, which is a frequent target of scammers thanks to its mobile device linking features, which allow for quick linking of external devices to an account. Once scammers gain access to an account, they can carry out a range of harmful activities, including impersonating the user to deceive friends and family. Last year, Meta deleted nearly 7 million accounts used by scammers in these ways.
Scammers may first pose as relatives, sellers, service providers or content creators, asking for phone numbers to share device linking codes and QR codes that some people may activate without thinking.
Meta's WhatsApp feature will watch for danger signs from unlinked accounts, such as a request from a different country you haven't communicated with before. It then displays an additional pop-up warning to make sure you want to connect with a stranger, ideally giving you a moment to consider whether that might be a dumb idea.
Facebook and Messenger red flags
Facebook points out red flags in scam accounts, like those that were just created. Meta
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