EU watchdog targets crypto ads on Instagram, Youtube, TikTok, Twitter

The largest European consumer rights group alleges crypto marketers on popular social networks use misleading promotion, exposing consumers to serious harm.

On June 8, the European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) — an umbrella group for 46 independent consumer organizations from 32 countries — published a report titled: “Hype or harm? The Great Social Media Crypto Con.“ In the 20-page document, the group states that consumers are not fully aware of the risks associated with crypto.

Today BEUC & consumer groups in 8 countries are taking action against TikTok, Instagram, Twitter & YouTube for facilitating the misleading promotion of crypto assets on social media . We’ve filed a complaint with @EU_Commission and consumer authorities: https://t.co/b6NYsBl4VM pic.twitter.com/w5iLMy4h1i

— The Consumer Voice (@beuc) June 8, 2023

The report draws examples from Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and TikTok, calling them “key players” in crypto advertising. In the case of Facebook, it notes that crypto advertisements skirt rules, forbidding the promotion of non-licensed financial platforms. The announcement stated:

“TikTok, Instagram, Twitter & YouTube are responsible for allowing misleading advertisements of crypto to multiply through ads & influencers. This is an unfair commercial practice, exposing consumers to serious harm (loss of significant amounts of money).”

With Twitter, the report nods at Elon Musk’s move to instate Doge, a mascot for Dogecoin, despite the platforms’ own prohibition of any crypto ad. BEUC also mentions so-called “finfluencers” as “an important source of information” for a younger audience.

Related: EU officials want all AI-generated content to be labeled

Despite the single national regulators’ efforts to combat misleading promotion, the problem still lacks a complex approach. According to the report, there is already a legal base to take EU-level measures — an Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), and there is a body to lead the enforcement — an EU Consumer Protection Cooperation Network (CPC Network):

“The problem continues to be addressed at national level mainly while it would require a common approach by the CPC Network acting collectively on the basis of the UCPD and targeting the platforms used for the promotion of crypto assets and related services.”

The report calls for the CPC-Network to request that social media platforms implement stricter conditions in their advertising policies, include in their Terms of Use a prohibition for influencers to promote crypto products and submit reports to the European Commission about the effectiveness of the measures put in place. 

Meanwhile, in France, the Senate approved an amendment allowing registered crypto companies to hire social media influencers for advertising and promotional purposes.

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