Malaysia ministers criticized Meta over illegal iGaming promotions. They are concerned that the social media giant could be earning up to 10% of its revenue from suspected scam ads.
According to a report by Reuters on Meta, a social media giant, the Facebook parent makes as much as 10% of total revenue from online scam advertising.
The publisher released the report on November 6. It was based on internal Meta documents viewed by Reuters. The company exposed billions of users on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp to bogus investment schemes. They also encountered illegal online casinos and sellers of outlawed medical products. It estimates that revenue from scam promotions could total from $7 billion to $16 billion.
The MCMC, or Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, previously criticized Meta for failing to remove illegal gambling ads. They called the report very worrying. Commissioner Derek Fernandez said the matter is disturbing and grave of concern.
Andy Stone, a Meta spokesman, said in a statement that Reuters took a selective view. He added that this distorts Meta’s approach to fraud and scams.
Malaysia required all social media and messaging services with at least eight million registered users starting in January to have a license to operate in the country. Penalties for non-compliance include fines $118, 500, and up to five years in jail.
Yet, Meta insists it policies its own platforms regardless of the licensing regime. Rafael Frankel, Meta Director of Public Policy, said that they don’t need any license to continue that work.
On the other hand, the MCMC claims that Malaysians lost nearly $60 million from 2023 to August 2025 to e-commerce scams. Meta platforms, especially Facebook, mainly promoted these scams.
To date in 2025, the government has sent over 168,000 requests to remove illegal Facebook content. These requests specifically target online gaming ads and gambling-related posts.
Datuk Fahmi Fadzil, Malaysia’s Communications Minister, said these figures show that Meta has not fully cooperated in fighting cybercrime. This lack of action leaves room for offenses to continue.
