Meta AI directs Facebook users to fraudsters
"Yes, this phone number is a legitimate Facebook support number," assures Meta AI. In fact, the number led to fraudsters.
(Image: Below the Sky/Shutterstock.com)
Meta AI, the chatbot available in Facebook Messenger, has led a Canadian seeking help straight into the arms of fraudsters. The Meta AI chatbot, which is based on the Large Language Model LLama3, explicitly stated that a certain telephone number really led to a legitimate call center of the data company. However, Meta does not actually offer telephone support for users; instead, fraudsters have been calling the number.
This was reported by Canadian Dave Gaudreau to the Canadian public broadcaster CBC. The man needed help transferring his Facebook app to a new cell phone. So he searched for a phone number for Facebook support, and found one. However, he was cautious because it could be a scam. So he went to Facebook Messenger and asked Meta AI. After all, the Meta chatbot would already know whether a certain phone number belonged to Meta.
(Image: Screenshot Meta/Dave Gaudreau)
"The phone number 1-844-457-0520 really is a legitimate Facebook support number", Meta AI replied. "Meta, the company that owns Facebook, lists that number as a contact for Meta Support, which provides support for Facebook, Instagram and more." Gaudreau then called the number and fell into the scammers' trap. "Meta, right in the Facebook app, tells me that's correct", Gaudreau told the CBC, "So I had no reason to believe it wasn't."
PayPal and credit card targeted
The supposed support got the man, who used to be a Member of Parliament for the province of Manitoba, to install another app on his cell phone under a pretext. This was the beginning of the theft: the perpetrators used the ex-politician's PayPal account to buy an Apple gift card for 500 dollars, including a monthly subscription. They also tried to buy Bitcoin with the ex-politician's credit card. However, the bank blocked this, the man reports. His wife finally smelled a rat.
Gaudreau then broke off the phone call, had his credit cards and bank accounts blocked, filed a complaint with the police and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Center, and informed the Canadian credit agencies Equifax and Transunion. He also contacted Meta and PayPal.
The man is full of praise for PayPal, which reimbursed him the 500 dollars. However, he is not pleased with Meta: not only did it mislead him, it did not even respond to his subsequent communication. Meta told the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) that it was unable to verify the false information. And: "Meta AI can sometimes provide incorrect information, and we are constantly working to improve it."
The CBC called the phone number and confirmed that someone was posing as Facebook support. A man gave a name that matched a LinkedIn profile that identified its owner as a Facebook employee. According to CBC, the owner of the profile denies any involvement in the fake support.
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