Over 1,200 scam ads on Facebook lure users with false earnings for engagement
Ads promoting a new type of financial scam appear on Facebook, enticing users to earn money through likes and comments. However, no such campaign information is available on the official websites or Facebook pages of bKash (1, 2) or Meta (1, 2). Despite this, the Meta Ad Library shows over 1,200 such ads running across eight different pages.
A search for “Earn from Facebook” in the Meta Ad Library reveals that at least eight pages have run 1,267 ads since October 29, which remain active as of this report. Clicking the link in these ads takes users to a ‘not secured’ webpage displaying the title “Earn from Facebook” alongside Facebook’s logo. Below, it states, “Dear user, you have been using Facebook for the last 3 years, 11 months, and 13 days, liking 74,730 photos and making 5,540 comments in this period. Facebook mainly pays users based on their likes and comments. You have earned a total of 11,667 taka.”
The displayed numbers vary each time the page is refreshed or revisited. An instruction below says, “How would you like to withdraw this money?” where three mobile financial services: “bKash,” “Nagad,” and “Rocket” are listed. Below that, numerous comments claim that these users have already received their money.
Choosing the bKash option redirects users to another ‘not secure’ webpage, instructing them to fill out a “Withdrawal Form” to claim their money. This form requests details such as the Facebook ID name, age, occupation, daily screen time on Facebook, status of the bKash number, and current balance in the bKash account.
Selecting the ‘Nagad’ option leads users to a gambling site called “Krikya,” while choosing the ‘Rocket’ redirects to an inactive webpage. Entering a balance of less than 100 takas in the “current balance in the bKash” field on the withdrawal form also leads users to the ‘Krikya’ gambling site.
Verification shows entering ‘100 BDT’ as the current balance in the bKash account directs users to a bKash payment gateway under “Sohel Enterprise.” Here, providing a bKash number, PIN, and OTP results in an automatic 100-taka withdrawal from the bKash account, confirming this as a scam. Though entering a balance below 100 taka redirects users to the same gambling site instead of the payment gateway.
No posts related to these links were found on the eight pages running these ads. However, in the profile pictures of some pages, multiple Facebook users commented, saying they were scammed by the ads. In one of the pages, a user commented, “Not only did I not get a bonus, but they also took BDT 500.” Another comment can be found on another page that says, “They took all the money; these are lies.” Among the eight pages, six have a total of 13 admins, with six from India, four from Indonesia, and three from Malaysia.
Earlier in May, fake bKash offer ads involving the Prime Minister and media outlets were spotted on Facebook. Dismislab published a detailed report on this. In June, more fake ads in the name of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, promising cash gifts for the Eid celebration, were seen running. According to a report by the Rumor Scanner Investigation Unit, over BDT 700,000 (more than 6,000 USD) was being spent daily on these ads. In July, another fake ad campaign appeared on Facebook claiming a bonus to mark bKash’s 16th anniversary. Dismislab had published another detailed report on this.
