Manhattan DA Bragg urges Meta to help stop immigration scams on Facebook, WhatsApp
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is urging Mark Zuckerberg to help stop immigration scams from proliferating on Meta’s platforms, marking the second time in recent weeks that a New York City prosecutor has sought to hold a social media company accountable for residents’ safety.Bragg wrote in a letter Thursday to Meta CEO Zuckerberg that “imposter accounts” pretending to offer legal services are increasingly using Facebook and WhatsApp to target unsuspecting victims and convince them to send money. The scammers often imitate real organizations and lawyers, even using their logos to create the appearance of credibility, the letter said.Victims have lost tens of thousands of dollars as a result of these scams, Bragg said. Meta’s terms of service for users prohibit conduct that is “unlawful, misleading, discriminatory or fraudulent,” but the DA argues the company is enabling “bad actors” to steal from vulnerable immigrants via its platforms.“Facebook specifically provides an option for reporting what it describes as ‘impersonating profiles,’” he wrote. “However, we have spoken with at least two institutional leaders of pro bono legal services organizations whose requests to remove false profiles were declined despite following this reporting protocol.”Bragg called on Meta to help crack down on the scams, including by making it easier for law enforcement agencies to report accounts engaged in criminal activity. He also asked Meta to temporarily suspend imposter accounts alleged to have committed a crime and ensure users claiming to represent legal service providers match those organizations’ geographic locations.Meta did not immediately respond to an inquiry from Gothamist. Bragg requested a meeting with company representatives to address the problem, but the DA’s office said it has yet to hear back from the tech giant.The New York Immigration Coalition, a nonprofit advocacy group, praised Bragg’s action on the issue. President and CEO Murad Awawdeh said in a statement Friday that “Meta and other social media platforms must do more to take responsibility and protect users from exploitation,” while New York “must continue to invest” in bona fide legal services.Bragg’s outreach is the latest instance of a local DA pressing social media companies to counter public safety dangers on their platforms. Bronx DA Darcel Clark urged several firms last week to help prevent chaotic teen “takeovers” of public spaces, saying such incidents are often driven by social media content. In February, hundreds of teens descended on a mall in the borough, causing disruption and leading to multiple arrests on rioting and unlawful assembly charges.Clark told Gothamist that TikTok responded to her request and met with her office this week. She said the parties committed to working together to amplify positive gatherings instead of potentially risky behavior. Her office said Snapchat replied with a letter outlining how it keeps users from promoting dangerous activities. A spokesperson for Clark said the DA has not yet received a response from Meta.Bragg’s office said it is launching a campaign to raise awareness about the scams targeting immigrants. Officials said New Yorkers can call the Manhattan DA’s Immigrant Affairs Unit at 212-335-3600 or via WhatsApp at 347-371-0877 to report this type of fraud.
