They're also inflating conversion numbers (the thing company ad spend is based on) by over 50%. Google is doing the same. So even real ads are only half as effective as companies think.
Good news! There's an ad bubble too!
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I don't understand why legitmate companies are not in arms over this. When that many ads are scams your customers will learn that facebook ads are scams and not buy from you either. Fool me once...
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The funny thing is, before Google existed, people had no idea if their marketing attempts were working. Maybe they had some ways of knowing or guessing, but there was no way to know how accurate their metrics were. Internet-based advertising, and tracking-based advertising in particular was supposed to change that.
And now that we sit here with a duopoly of advertising giants, we're back to the stage where marketers just have to trust that their provider is giving them good helpful information. And how are they supposed to know whether they really can believe it or not? They can't of course! So we've come right back to where we've started.
But considering they still spent tons of money before Google and Facebook gave them these "analytics", it looks like they probably don't even care that much.
It’s crazy that people still use Facebook. But I bet even if you don’t use it, you’re still producing value for them when browsing unrelated websites.
I live in Eastern Europe. 1/3 ads I have seen during the past month while reading google news, have been scam ads. My eye is pretty trained towards them. I even reported some that I thought are REALLY crossing the line, like the one that used AI generated image of Prime Minister of my country, leading to a phishing site. Each time I've reported it to google with proof, the answer from google has always been "this does not go against our terms of service"
At least Meta straight-up admitted to grifting people, Google has yet to do so.
9 comments in c/technology@beehaw.org view that post
If you open YouTube shorts in a new account or an account that doesn't store history the ads are nearly exclusively AI slop scams. This is not just a Meta issue.
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But the company only bans advertisers if its automated systems predict the marketers are at least 95% certain to be committing fraud, the documents show. If the company is less certain – but still believes the advertiser is a likely scammer – Meta charges higher ad rates as a penalty, according to the documents.
What a way to run a business! I think we could all learn a lot from the zuck.
3 comments in c/cybersecurity@infosec.pub view that post
Most of their ads for goods are scams, I keep seeing great ads for band merchandise but the smallest amount of research shows that the sites are fake. I got scammed a while back by a fake vinyl sale but fortunately my CC company reversed the charges.
reduced user reports of scams
Probably by hiding the reporting function or something
Just ask the CBC.
In Canada there are a ton of fake scam ads pretending to be politicians and the CBC
1 comment in c/news@lemmy.world view that post
Digital slum lords
1 comment in c/usa@midwest.social view that post
They probably aren't even counting all the political scams and disinformation. In the past year FB has tried to push right wing extremist propaganda from about 40-50 different sources on me, despite me banning each one, one at a time. What the fuck FB??? Why are you trying super hard to peddle Fascism on Americans? Why are the people running FB such incredible sociopaths? I also got 4 posts from left/liberal sources, and I rejected those too. Why the f*ck would anybody wish to use something as crappy and untrustworthy as Facebook to get political information from? Only if the source was Bernie Sanders himself would I consider "subscribing".
Zuckerberg deserves the phrase "fascist sociopath" on his tombstone.
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