Google and Meta Scam You With Fake Ads. The FTC May Finally Crack Down

That ad at the top of your Google search results or tucked between posts on Facebook might look more trustworthy because a major platform served it to you.

But did anyone on the platform side bother to check whether it’s real? They might have to start.

The Federal Trade Commission is considering new rules for companies that run search engines, social networks, and digital marketplaces over the role their advertising systems play in impersonation scams.^[1]

The FTC says these platforms can do more than simply display a scam ad. Their targeting and optimization tools can help scammers put convincing fake ads in front of the people most likely to click them. In 2025, Americans reported losing nearly $3.5 billion to impersonation scams, according to the agency.

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Scam ads can look legitimate

A sponsored result at the top of Google or an advertisement in your Facebook feed can look like it has already passed some kind of legitimacy check. The FTC warned consumers in August that social media platforms do not always thoroughly vet advertisers or the ads they run.

And, of course, scammers know that.

They can buy ads that impersonate real companies, banks, retailers, government agencies, and support services. Once the ad is inside a major platform’s advertising system, the same technology designed to help legitimate businesses find customers can potentially help scammers find victims.

The FTC is asking whether platforms’ ad tools help impersonation scams spread — and whether the money platforms make from those ads affects how they respond.

It is also examining the financial incentives platforms have to keep selling and optimizing those ads.

For now, though, the FTC has opened an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and is gathering public comments before deciding what action, if any, to take.

Meta has already made millions from scam ads

Earlier this year, we covered an investigation that found Meta made an estimated $14.3 million from fake Medicare ads that appeared more than 215 million times on Facebook.

Many of those ads used fake celebrity endorsements and government-style branding to promote bogus Medicare benefits. Nearly three-quarters of the ad impressions went to users over 65.

The investigation found that Meta’s own advertising tools helped put those ads in front of older Americans. Some advertisers even kept running new campaigns after Meta removed previous ads for policy violations.

Meta says it is expanding advertiser verification and using AI to detect scams. In March, the company said it wanted “verified advertisers [to] drive 90% of our ads revenue by the end of 2026,” up from 70% at the time.

Our analysis of FTC data found that Americans reported losing more than $2 billion to scams that began on social media in 2025, up 160% from 2021.

Google ads creates a false sense of security

Attackers have already abused that visibility. In one campaign we covered, a sponsored Google result led people searching for ChatGPT to a fake download page designed to install malware.

Security researchers at Varonis documented a tool called 1Campaign that helps criminals run malicious Google Ads while showing harmless pages to ad reviewers and security scanners. Real visitors can instead be sent to phishing pages.

A scammer who gets an ad through screening may be able to put a fake version of a service directly in your search results.

That can be especially dangerous when you’re searching for things such as:

• Your bank’s login page
• Customer-service phone numbers
• Government benefits

The ad may look polished, use the company’s name, and even copy its logo. That’s how phishing pages can trick you into entering information you’d never hand to a stranger.

How to avoid fake ads right now

For banking, benefits, and account support, skip the ad and open the official app or a bookmark you already trust.

If an ad claims to be from your bank, insurer, retailer, or a government agency, avoid clicking it.

If you’re shopping, watch for fake stores that copy familiar brands, sometimes down to the logo and product photos.

You can also use an ad blocker to reduce your exposure to malicious ads in your browser, though it won’t protect you from every phishing attempt.

Be especially suspicious if the page or caller asks you to:

• Send money through gift cards, crypto, wire transfers, or payment apps
• Give up passwords, verification codes, or Social Security numbers
• Install remote-access software
• Act immediately because your account is supposedly frozen or compromised

If you think you’ve found a scam ad, report it to the platform and the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

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Author Details

Thomas Kent

About the Author

Thomas Kent is a multi-disciplined reporter with over a decade of experience covering online platforms, digital trends, and consumer-facing tech. Tom focuses on digital privacy, data tracking, and user behavior, with a particular interest in how cookies, online surveillance, and platform design shape the modern internet experience. His reporting takes a research-driven, news-focused approach, translating complex technical topics into clear, accessible insights.