In 2024, global social media users reached 5.17 billion, a 4.44% increase from 2023's 4.95 billion. Nearly half of U.S. consumers report making purchases through social media, cementing these platforms as vital sales channels.
But thanks to their sheer size and lax security measures, platforms have quickly become hotbeds for scams.
Social media scams are incredibly difficult to detect, as bad actors adopt AI technologies to impersonate brands and make their frauds more persuasive.
With just a few clicks, AI can be used to create convincing deepfake videos, automate fake accounts, and more - meaning that consumers are easily fooled into thinking that they’re interacting with the brands they know and love.
It’s clear that social media brand protection is more important now than ever. Here’s how to protect your brand while safeguarding your reputation and customers from the threat of scams.
Social Media Scams: A Growing Challenge
The advent of Generative AI and other technologies has made it significantly easier for scammers to impersonate brands on social media. Due to the number of potential victims on social media sites, scammers have flocked to these platforms to sell counterfeit products.
Scammers often impersonate well-known brands, leveraging their hard-won reputations to promote schemes like purchasing cryptocurrency.
The problem of social media scams is now so common that multiple consumer protection agencies are proactively alerting their customers to the latest strategies used by scammers, which typically aim to steal victims’ money or sensitive information.
The issue is so widespread that major domestic banks in Taiwan have suspended their advertising on Facebook, citing the endless number of financial scams on the platform.
Many social media platforms simply don’t do enough to regulate fraud on their platforms, creating an environment that emboldens scammers.
Some governments are attempting to draft legislation to combat fraudulent activity on social media platforms. However, these laws - which would place the onus on the platforms to remove fake accounts and scams - have not yet been enacted on a widespread scale.
This means that it's up to brands to make sure their IP isn’t being used fraudulently by scammers. Social media brand protection is the responsibility of the business, as government regulations and the platforms themselves are slow to catch up.
Brands need to take robust steps to protect their IP and associated brand content or risk facing backlash from scammed customers and damage to their brand reputations. Even if fraud is perpetrated through no fault of their own, brands end up paying the price for the scammers’ nefarious actions.
Why Social Media Brand Protection is Crucial
When a scammer impersonates a brand, the consequences are disastrous. Customers who fall victim to fraud can blame the brand, and even being associated with misconduct or fraud can seriously damage a brand’s reputation.
Unfortunately, social media scams are very effective. Many big brands have been impersonated by fraudsters who tricked millions of people into believing they were actually interacting with the brand.
Greenpeace MENA recently had its brand impersonated on social media, forcing the respected NGO to issue an official statement warning users not to fall victim to scams promoted by the fake account.
A fake Egyptian Greenpeace account claimed that users who posted and promoted the page would earn money, forcing Greenpeace to state that they do not pay for engagement.
By promising cash rewards for spreading the fake page, the scammers were able to grow their influence by encouraging users to engage with the brand on social media platforms.
While some brands use social media verifications, such as a blue checkmark on their accounts, to help users know that they are engaging with the real brand, these solutions are not perfect. Scammers can easily copy or fake blue checkmarks and other validation symbols.
Fraud on social media is running rampant, with no signs of slowing down. The FTC recently found that social media was the most likely place for consumers to be targeted by scams.The FTC reported that the most popular social platforms for scams were Instagram (30%), Facebook (26%), WhatsApp (13%), and Telegram (9%).
This is especially important when considering that Facebook and Instagram are the most popular platforms in the U.S., with 177.5 and 138.5 million monthly users, respectively. They are also the most active social platforms for online shopping. According to Capital One, over 70% of Instagram’s 1.4 billion active users shop on the platform, making it a popular choice for fraudsters. Also, the number of monthly active Facebook users is still increasing each year. This growth means that Facebook remains an attractive hunting ground for scammers.
Because there’s so much fraud on social media, it’s difficult for brands to keep up. These channels are often managed by marketing departments, and not always monitored to look out for brand impersonation scams.
When fraudulent brand accounts aren’t immediately discovered, damage can add up. Taking down these accounts as quickly as possible is the key to mitigating the ill effects on a company and ensuring that a brand’s IP and reputation are safeguarded.
The problem is that social media platforms often don’t work fast enough to shut down fraudulent accounts, with the takedowns being a long, time-consuming process.
Fortunately, brand protection software can help your brand maintain control over your reputation and IP. These solutions provide continuous monitoring of social media channels, enabling you to take proactive steps to protect your brand.
BrandShield: Robust IP and Brand Reputation Protection on Social Media
BrandShield’s AI-powered platform helps brands stay ahead of social media threats, empowering you to safeguard your IP and reputation.
Leveraging automated monitoring, our platform discovers and identifies impersonating accounts and enables ultra-fast takedowns to prevent scams and protect your IP and reputation.
Our team of expert threat hunters, including lawyers with IP expertise and years of experience on digital platforms, works with brands to combat emerging scams and provide actionable insights to stay on top of current threats.
Discover more about BrandShield’s solution for social media brand protection.
