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Meta Says It Removed More Than 3.7 Million Accounts, Pages and Groups in West Africa Scam Crackdown
Meta says it removed more than 3.7 million accounts, pages and groups during a joint crackdown on scam networks in West Africa. The company also says it shared leads on more than 30 suspected scam centers; law enforcement reported 28 arrest
AI.info Team · Written with AI ·
More than 3.7 million accounts, pages and groups: that is how many Meta says it removed from Facebook and Instagram during a joint crackdown on scam networks in West Africa. The company announced the results on October 13, after the operation began on October 6. Law enforcement reported 28 arrests and the rescue of 117 people trafficked into scam compounds in Ghana.
Meta says 14 other technology companies joined the effort, including OpenAI, Coinbase, Google, Microsoft, Starlink and Adobe. The National Crime Agency (NCA) hosted the operation in London with the US Department of Justice, FBI and other US agencies, alongside law enforcement from Ghana, Nigeria and other countries. Meta described it as the first joint disruption to broadly target scam networks in West Africa.
Millions of accounts, leads on 30 centers
Meta said most of the accounts it removed appeared to target people in the United States and United Kingdom, often through profiles impersonating American and British users. Microsoft also suspended accounts suspected of links to the activity. Meta said it shared leads on more than 30 suspected scam centers, while Coinbase said it identified more than 65 active scam victims and stopped over $415,000 in potential losses.
The participating teams shared information across platforms, jurisdictions and financial systems, covering recruitment, online infrastructure, victim identification and money movement. The networks were linked to investment and romance fraud, fake jobs, government and military impersonation, non-delivery schemes and so-called recovery scams, which target people who have already lost money. Meta characterized West African operations as more decentralized and less industrialized than scam centers in Southeast Asia.
117 people rescued from a Ghana compound
Meta said the 117 people rescued in Ghana had been trafficked and forced to work for criminal syndicates. They were found imprisoned in a residential compound, where the company said they had been malnourished and subjected to physical and psychological abuse. Their captors were arrested and face prosecution, according to Meta.
The company’s announcement does not detail how many of the 28 arrests took place in each country or name the suspects. It says it shared leads on more than 30 centers; it does not say that authorities raided or shut down every site identified. The distinction matters: network leads, platform removals and arrests describe different kinds of action.
OpenAI frames AI as part of the response
OpenAI was among the companies involved, but the release does not describe a specific model or tool it used in this operation. Jack Stubbs, identified by Meta as OpenAI’s lead scams investigator, said:
“AI gives scam fighters powerful new tools.”
He added that the company uses AI to disrupt scam operations and help people spot scams, and shares insights with industry and law-enforcement partners.
The operation puts companies that operate platforms, financial services and other technology alongside police agencies investigating the same criminal networks. Meta’s figures show the scale of its account removals, while Coinbase’s figure describes potential losses it says it prevented; neither is a count of money recovered from victims. The announcement leaves open how many of the investigations will lead to further prosecutions, and how long the disruption will hinder the networks involved.