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Site terms and policies
Community standards
Privacy policy
Terms
Cookie policy
Scam Prevention Hub
Education
App support
Facebook Help Center
Messenger Help Center
Instagram Help Center
WhatsApp Help Center
Site terms and policies
Community standards
Privacy policy
Terms
Cookie policy
Scam Prevention Hub
Education
App support
Facebook Help Center
Messenger Help Center
Instagram Help Center
WhatsApp Help Center
Site terms and policies
Community standards
Privacy policy
Terms
Cookie policy
Scam Prevention Hub
Education
App support
Facebook Help Center
Messenger Help Center
Instagram Help Center
WhatsApp Help Center
United States (English)
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Meta helps protect people from fraud and scams.

Scams and fraud are a problem that affect people across the internet. We continuously work to inform people about common fraud and scams, and build tools to thelp them protect themslves across our platforms. Learn how to spot, avoid, and foil common scams here.

Spot

Knowing the signs of common fraud and scams is the first step to protecting yourself. These are some signs to be aware of.

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E-Commerce Scams

E-commerce scams will impersonate a legitimate vendor or online marketplace, in order to steal your financial information or make you click on a dangerous link. Be wary of emails claiming there was an issue with your checkout, and never click on a link if you don't recognize. Check any emails or messages you get for spelling errors, fake brands, or absurd offers. And if you're not sure whether an email is real, you can always double-check your payment history directly in your Facebook settings or with your financial services provider.

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Financial Scams

Financial scams use the promise of low-risk, high-return investments in order to collect your financial information and scam you. They often urge you to make decisions quickly, so you don't have time to find out whether the opportunity is a scam or not. Remember: if an investment opportunity feels too good to be true, it problably is.

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Gambling Scams

Gambling scams use false advertising to promote fake gambling or betting products, and steal your financial information. They often use the promise of "free" bets to encourage you to click. Independently verify any gambling sites before you use them, and make sure that you stick to ones you know and trust.

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Romance Scams

Romance scams use fake social media profiles to create trust and build a fake relationship with you, in order to eventually steal your financial information or deceive you into sending money. Protect yourself by verifying any photos sent, and making sure that you don't send any of your personal information too soon. Beware of anyone asking for money or sharing a "great investment opportunity" with you.

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Celebrity Impersonation

Fraudsters often impersonate celebrities or other high-profile individuals in order to lure you to scam sites. Be wary of clicking on any links that you don't recognize, or of unexpected messages. If your favorite celebrity reaches out to you personally, or is promoting something that seems to good to be true, be cautious.

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Government Benefits And Services Impersonation

Scammers often impersonate government services or bodies in order to steal your personal and financial information. Remember: real government agencies or officials will never ask for any sensitive information like PINs or passwords

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Avoid

Meta gives people various tools to help them stay one step ahead of scammers and fraudsters. Take advantage of these safety tools:

Stay safe: Learn how to create a safer experience, including control over friending others, sharing your personal information and reporting content that violates our policies.
Secure your account: Use Safety Checkup to make sure that your account is as safe as possible. Set strong passwords and use tools like two-factor authentication and login alerts to give your accounts an extra layer of protection. Learn what to do if you believe your account has been hacked or compromised.
Protect personal information: Find out who can see your posts and what information is available for public viewing. Discover how to review information when someone has tagged your account or wants to post on your timeline.

Report

The most powerful way to protect yourself from common online scams and fraud is by reporting suspicious activity. With a single click, the 'Report' tool removes a messge from your feed, alerts Meta of a potential scam, and helps stop the spread of potentially violating content.

Report on Facebook
Report on Instagram
Report on Facebook Marketplace
Report on WhatsApp
Report on Messenger
Report Business Impersonation

Policies

Explore the links below to learn more about the standards, guidelines and policies that guide the actions Meta takes to help keep you safer from online scams and fraud.

Facebook Community Standards Fraud and Deception Policy
Instagram Community Guidelines
Advertising Standards
Commerce Policies
Facebook Terms of Services
Instagram Terms of Use
WhatsApp Terms of Services
WhatsApp Channels Terms and Privacy Policy