Class Action Lawsuit Alleges Meta Allowed Stock Investment Scams to Advertise on Instagram, Facebook
by Chloe Gocher
Bouck et al. v. Meta Platforms, Inc.
Filed: June 20, 2025 ◆§ 3:25-cv-05194
A class action lawsuit claims that Meta knowingly allows scam ads to exist on its platform and use its ad-targeting technology to target vulnerable users.
A proposed class action lawsuit claims that Meta Platforms has knowingly allowed ads for investment scams to run on its platforms, using its sophisticated ad-targeting technology to push the content to vulnerable Facebook and Instagram users.
Want to stay in the loop on class action lawsuits that matter to you? Sign up for ClassAction.org’s free weekly newsletter.
The 30-page lawsuit contends that although Meta has invested heavily in developing its ad-serving capabilities, it has taken no meaningful action to prevent fraudulent advertisements from infesting its platforms.
The filing alleges that Meta, as reported by company personnel, has “deliberately turned a blind eye” to the multitude of scam ads and “continued to court business from known scammers,” who the suit says sometimes impersonate celebrities, well-known investors and legitimate financial advisory firms to lure unsuspecting consumers into fraud schemes.
According to the class action suit, the plaintiffs were victimized by an investment scam perpetrated by an “organized criminal network” operating out of China, Taiwan and Malaysia. In January 2025, the scammers, using Meta’s ad-targeting tools, recommended that users purchase shares of China Liberal Education Holdings Ltd. (CLEU), a penny stock then listed on the NASDAQ.
Although CLEU publicly reported that it had 29 million outstanding shares, the lawsuit says, the company secretly issued 240 million additional shares to the CLEU scammers in a private offering in December 2024.
The scammers, who ran the scheme through WhatsApp groups, told victims to buy CLEU shares at specific price points while their co-conspirators, holding the 240 million secretly issued shares, “entered sell orders at matching price points,” thereby liquidating their payload of shares “in exchange for the victims’ cash,” the case explains.
In the early hours of January, 30, 2025, the suit continues, the market became aware of CLEU’s issuance of secret shares, and the stock value immediately collapsed.
“Plaintiffs estimate total losses to the proposed Class to be in excess of $300 million,” the lawsuit reads, alleging that the scammers would not have accomplished their scheme on such a large scale and with such efficiency if not for Meta’s advertising tools.
The scam took place between January 22 and 30, 2025, the filing says. During that time period, victims were allegedly targeted by advertisements created and distributed through Meta’s Flexible Format and Dynamic Creative advertising tools, which are designed to optimize the format and reach of ads for maximum engagement, the case states.
The lawsuit claims that Meta is aware of the numerous scam, illicit and low-quality product advertisements that apparently comprise as much as 70% of the advertisements on its platforms. According to the suit, approximately 97% of Meta’s revenue comes from advertising.
Per the lawsuit, Meta’s terms of service specifically forbid “content that attempts to scam or defraud users and/or businesses by means of… [offering] investment opportunities where the opportunity is of a ‘get-rich-quick’ nature and/or claims that a small investment can be turned into a large amount… [or] investment opportunities where returns on investment are guaranteed risk-free.” In spite of this, the case says, Meta has continued to allow fraudulent ads such as those for CLEU to freely exist on its platforms.
“While scam ads cause untold financial harm to Meta’s customers, Meta has little incentive to intervene because it receives revenues regardless of whether the ad is part of a scam,” the complaint summarizes.
In the case of the CLEU scam, the lawsuit alleges that Meta’s user demographic data collection employed in its ad-targeting technology allowed the scammers to ensure their ads would reach the most vulnerable users and increased the likelihood these users would engage with the ads by creating “a sense of shared community, values and trust between the user and the advisor featured in the ad.”
The Meta class action lawsuit seeks to represent anyone who was tricked into investing in CLEU between January 22, 2025 and January 30, 2025 as a direct or indirect result of false advertisements on Facebook and/or Instagram and subsequently lost money.
Check out ClassAction.org’s lawsuit list for the latest top class action lawsuits.
Video Game Addiction Lawsuits
If your child suffers from video game addiction — including Fortnite addiction or Roblox addiction — you may be able to take legal action. Gamers 18 to 22 may also qualify.
Learn more:Video Game Addiction Lawsuit
Depo-Provera Lawsuits
Anyone who received Depo-Provera or Depo-Provera SubQ injections and has been diagnosed with meningioma, a type of brain tumor, may be able to take legal action.
Read more: Depo-Provera Lawsuit
How Do I Join a Class Action Lawsuit?
Did you know there's usually nothing you need to do to join, sign up for, or add your name to new class action lawsuits when they're initially filed?
Read more here: How Do I Join a Class Action Lawsuit?
Stay Current
Sign Up For
Our Newsletter
New cases and investigations, settlement deadlines, and news straight to your inbox.
Before commenting, please review our comment policy.