Hype or Harm? The great social media crypto con

BEUC and nine of its members (ASUFIN and OCU, Spain; Altroconsumo, Italy; DECO, Portugal; Forbrugerrådet Tænk, Denmark; KEPKA Greece; Vartotojų aljansas, Lithuania; SOS Poprad, Slovakia; UFC-Que Choisir, France) filed a complaint on 8 June 2023 with the European Commission and national consumer authorities against Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and Twitter for facilitating the misleading promotion of crypto assets.

Following our assessment, social media companies are responsible for allowing misleading advertisements of crypto assets to multiply on their platforms (both through advertising and influencers). In our view, this constitutes an unfair commercial practice, as it exposes consumers to serious harm including, the loss of significant amounts of money.

Due to their high volatility and speculative nature, crypto assets remain highly risky investment products not suitable for many consumers. Also, it is well-documented that crypto assets may expose consumers to scams and unfair commercial practices resulting in heavy financial losses. This is why we are turning to the authorities in charge of protecting consumers to ensure Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and Twitter fulfil their duty to protect consumers.

As a solution, we are calling for the following action:

Stricter advertising policies (and enforcement of them) from the social media platforms on the advertising of crypto assets
The platforms to take measures to prevent influencers from misleading consumers as to the nature of crypto assets
The platforms to inform the European Commission about the effectiveness of the measures put in place to protect consumers against such unfair practices
European consumer authorities to cooperate with European Supervisory Authorities for financial services to ensure the platforms adapt their advertising policies to prevent the misleading promotion of crypto assets

Press release | BEUC acts against social media platforms for facilitating misleading crypto asset promotion | 08.06.2023

Report | Hype or harm? The great social media crypto con | 08.06.2023

Letter to the ESAs | BEUC action on the misleading promotion of crypto assets on social media platforms | 08.06.2023

Letter to CPC network | CPC alert on misleading promotion for crypto on social media platforms | 08.06.2023

Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Twitter target of EU crypto advertising complaint
Reuters (9 June 2023)
…Meta Platforms' Instagram, Alphabet's YouTube, TikTok and Twitter could face regulatory action after European consumer group BEUC complained to the European Commission and consumer authorities that the online platforms allegedly facilitate the misleading promotion of crypto assets.…

Twitter, TikTok, Instagram And YouTube Criticized By Consumer Group Over Misleading Crypto Ads
Forbes (8 June 2023)
“An influential consumer group on Thursday savaged TikTok, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram over the proliferation of misleading crypto ads on social platforms in a complaint to consumer authorities and the European Commission.”

TikTok, Twitter, YouTube et Instagram mis en cause dans la promotion trompeuse de cryptos
Les Echos (9 June 2023)
“Alors que les acteurs des cryptomonnaies font face à un tour de vis réglementaire généralisé à travers le monde, c'est au tour des réseaux sociaux d'être pointés du doigt. Le Bureau européen des unions de consommateurs (BEUC) a publié jeudi un rapport mettant en cause les réseaux sociaux TikTok, Instagram, YouTube et Twitter pour leur rôle dans la promotion trompeuse de cryptomonnaies.”

Crypto ads from social influencers are in the crosshairs of consumer rights groups in Ireland and Europe
Irish Independent (12 June 2023)
“The Consumers’ Association of Ireland (CAI) has rowed in behind a Europe-wide effort to curb the unregulated promotion of cryptocurrencies by social media influencers.”

Consumatori europei contro piattaforme social per pubblicità criptovalute
La Repubblica (8 June 2023)
“L'Organizzazione europea dei consumatori (BEUC) e nove dei suoi membri (Altroconsumo in Italia) hanno presentato un reclamo alla Commissione europea e alle autorità per la tutela dei consumatori contro Instagram, YouTube, TikTok e Twitter per aver facilitato la promozione ingannevole di crypto asset.”