Brazilian scammers, raking in millions, Using IG

4/10/2025 5:55

A group of suspected scammers in Brazil using Instagram ads featuring deepfakes of supermodel Gisele Bundchen and other celebrities appears to have made millions of dollars through online fraud.



Authorities arrested four suspects tied to the scheme this week and froze assets across five states in an investigation that found over $3.9 million in suspicious funds identified by federal anti-money laundering organ COAF.



The operation marks one of the first attempts in Brazil to counter the growing use of artificial intelligence tools to manipulate images and videos of celebrities for online scams.



Brazil's Supreme Court ruled in June that social media platforms can be held liable for criminal ads posted by users if they fail to act swiftly to remove the content, even without a court order.



Instagram owner Meta said that its policies forbid "ads that deceptively use public figures to try to scam people," and that it removes such ads "when detected." The company added in a statement that it has "specialized systems to detect celeb-bait, invests heavily in trained review teams, shares tips on avoiding scams and offers tools to report potential violations."