Thailand Issues Ultimatum to Meta: Tackle Crypto Scams or Face Removal

A Thai legislator is pursuing a legal mandate to force the closure of Facebook within the nation's borders before the end of the month. The lawmaker's allegations stem from claims that the social media platform has been enabling and supporting fraudulent investment schemes.

The Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (DES) in Thailand has issued a warning to Meta's Facebook, demanding that the platform take immediate measures to mitigate the proliferation of deceptive cryptocurrency investment scams being promoted on its site. Failure to address this issue could result in Facebook's expulsion from the country.

The impact of these fraudulent advertisements has been substantial, affecting the livelihoods of more than 200,000 individuals, as revealed in an official statement released by the Ministry. Chaiwut Thanakmanusorn, who oversees the DES, has taken the step of petitioning a Thai court to prepare an order that would effectively shut down Facebook's operations in the country if the platform does not comply with the Ministry's directives.

Over the span of three years, Facebook (now known as Meta) has gradually relaxed its restrictions on cryptocurrency and blockchain-related advertisements, as previously reported by Bitsday. This relaxation involved expanding the criteria and accepting regulatory licenses as qualifiers for running such advertisements.

In March 2022, Facebook faced legal action from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, which alleged that the company had engaged in false, misleading, or deceptive conduct by allowing the dissemination of scam cryptocurrency ads featuring prominent Australian celebrities.