One Every Six Minutes: The Rising Tide of Purchase Scams on Meta Platforms

New analysis of financial crime data reveals that a victim lost money to a fraudulent seller on Facebook or Instagram every six minutes in the UK during the first half of last year. Research conducted by Lloyds Bank indicates that platforms owned by Meta now account for 70 per cent of all purchase scams, a category of fraud where criminals deceive consumers into paying for goods or services that never exist. The bank has identified this as the fastest-growing type of fraud in the country.

Background and Context

Purchase scams typically involve transactions on online marketplaces or social media feeds where the seller disappears after payment is made. The data shows a significant upward trend, with the volume of purchase fraud cases on Instagram rising by 16.37 per cent last year, and cases on Facebook increasing by 5.16 per cent. According to Lloyds, the financial impact is intensifying, with the average amount lost per individual scam increasing. The most common items targeted in these schemes include vehicles and, seasonally, event tickets.

Key Figures and Entities

Liz Ziegler, fraud prevention director at Lloyds, highlighted the specific risks associated with high-value items and seasonal events. "Football tickets are more popular when it’s near the finals of the Premier League," Ziegler noted, pointing to a spike in cases during the summer. Data from Santander further illustrates the scale of the losses, reporting that more than £15.5 million was stolen from its customers through purchase scams in 2025. Of this total, over £3.2 million was traced back to transactions originating on Facebook. Building work scams accounted for £3.8 million in losses across all platforms, while car and vehicle scams resulted in £2.3 million.

Legal and Financial Mechanisms

Since October 2024, banks in the UK have been legally required to reimburse victims of authorised push payment (APP) fraud up to £85,000, provided the victim has not acted with "gross negligence." This regulatory shift places a heavier financial burden on banks to compensate customers, even when the fraud originates on third-party technology platforms. While banks process the refunds, the actual prevention of fraudulent listings relies on the moderation systems of social media companies.

Policy Response and Public Sentiment

A poll of more than 2,000 people commissioned by Lloyds suggests a public demand for greater accountability from tech giants. Seventy-five per cent of respondents believe social media platforms should be legally required to protect users from scams, while 62 per cent believe banks should also bear responsibility. However, confidence in the current safeguards is low: 73 per cent of those surveyed expressed a lack of confidence in social media platforms’ ability to keep scammers off their sites. Facebook has stated that it has systems in place to detect financial scams and runs consumer awareness campaigns, yet the data suggests these measures are currently insufficient to stem the tide of fraud.

Sources

This report draws on fraud analysis and press releases from Lloyds Bank and Santander UK, as well as UK regulations regarding the reimbursement of fraud victims enforced by the Payment Systems Regulator.