Facebook Allowed Fake Medicare Ads to Reach Seniors 215 Million Times Last Year

Facebook Allowed Fake Medicare Ads to Reach Seniors 215 Million Times Last Year

A report released by the Center for Countering Digital Hate, an organization that tracks harmful content on social media platforms, found that Meta — the company that owns Facebook and Instagram — allowed Medicare Advantage scam ads to accumulate more than 215 million views in a single year. According to the report, titled "Scambook," roughly three-quarters of those impressions were served to users aged 65 and older.

The pattern described in the investigation: ads used deepfake images and video of public figures — including Donald Trump, Oprah Winfrey, and even animated characters — to create a false sense of endorsement, then promised seniors "free" groceries, rent assistance, or cash. Clicking those ads, the report found, typically led to pages collecting personal information or steering visitors toward Medicare plan switches that left them worse off. The CCDH also reported that nearly identical ads were frequently reinstated on the platform after removal, suggesting the screening process was not stopping the same fraudulent content from returning.

Meta has not publicly responded to the specific findings in the report.

Gobble's Take: An ad offering free government benefits and featuring a celebrity endorsement is worth treating as a scam first and a real offer second.

Sources: Center for Countering Digital Hate · USA Herald

A Chicago Man Lost $69,000 After a Scammer Sent Him an AI-Generated U.S. Marshal's Badge

The call to the Chicago-area man started with someone posing as an Apple representative, warning of fraudulent charges on his account — and with the caller ID displaying Apple's actual name. From there, according to reporting by Moneywise, the scammer "transferred" the call to a person claiming to be U.S. Marshal Silas V. Darden — a real, retired federal marshal whose identity was used without his knowledge. To back up that claim, the scammer texted a photo of an official-looking badge generated with AI.

Threatened with arrest and convinced his finances were at risk, the victim transferred $69,000 into accounts he was told were in his name. His son Tony later told reporters the loss represented more than 40% of his father's life savings. The accounts, once the money arrived, were closed — they had never belonged to him. According to the FBI, government impersonation scams are among the fastest-growing fraud categories, and AI tools are making fabricated credentials harder to distinguish from real ones at first glance.

The detail worth sharing with family: a real federal marshal will not call to warn you about fraud and then ask for a wire transfer to resolve it.

Gobble's Take: A badge sent over text — however official it looks — is not identity verification, and no federal agency uses wire transfers to protect your savings.

Source: Moneywise

Her Son's Phone Was "About to Die" — Then the Scammer Asked for $12,000

A woman in Brooks, Alberta, received a text that appeared to come from her son's number: his phone was dying, it said, and she should reach him at a different number instead. She switched to that number, the conversation continued as normal as she understood it, and she sent an e-transfer. It was only days later, when she spoke with her actual son, that she learned she had been sending money to a stranger.

Brooks RCMP issued a public warning following the incident, noting the woman lost approximately $12,000. Police described the tactic as a variation on what is sometimes called the "family emergency scam" — a pattern in which fraudsters use social media details to impersonate a known contact, then introduce urgency before a victim has time to verify. RCMP advised that if a family member ever texts from an unfamiliar number asking for money, the safest step is to call the person's known number directly before doing anything else.

Gobble's Take: An unexpected number change combined with an urgent money request is a combination worth pausing on, even when the message feels completely familiar.

Source: CHAT News Today

Microsoft Called. Then the FTC. Then Chase. A California Couple Lost $100,000.

For an elderly couple in Willits, California, the fraud began with what looked like a routine computer security alert — a pop-up directing them to call "Microsoft technical support." According to reporting by Redheaded Blackbelt, the person who answered that call gained remote access to their computer and told them the device contained illegal material. Then came a second call: someone identifying himself as an FTC investigator, warning the couple they were under federal scrutiny. Then a third: a person claiming to be from Chase Bank, instructing them to move their money to "protect" it.

Over several days, the couple withdrew and transferred approximately $100,000. Each layer of the fraud was designed to make the next caller seem more credible — the tech company "discovered" the problem, the government "confirmed" it, and the bank provided the supposed solution. Law enforcement agencies and consumer protection organizations consistently report that this sequence — tech support leading to government impersonation leading to a bank transfer request — is one of the most financially damaging scam patterns affecting older adults. No legitimate version of this chain exists: Microsoft does not refer customers to the FTC, and neither agency will ask you to move money to stay safe.

Gobble's Take: Three different official-sounding callers all pointing toward the same wire transfer is a script, not a coincidence.

Source: Redheaded Blackbelt

In Case You Missed It

Yesterday's top stories:

• When the "bank fraud specialist" calls, the fraud may already be in progress
• A bank counter employee noticed something off — and helped stop a £582,000 investment fraud
• The FTC wants scam stories to travel through families before the scams do