Facebook Fraud

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Published 2014-02-10

Evidence Facebook's revenue is based on fake likes.
My first vid on the problem with Facebook: bit.ly/1dXudqY
I know first-hand that Facebook's advertising model is deeply flawed. When I paid to promote my page I gained 80,000 followers in developing countries who didn't care about Veritasium (but I wasn't aware of this at the time). They drove my reach and engagement numbers down, basically rendering the page useless. I am not the only one who has experienced this. Rory Cellan-Jones had the same luck with Virtual Bagel: www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-18819338

The US Department of State spent $630,000 to acquire 2 million page likes and then realized only 2% were engaged. wapo.st/1glcyZo

I thought I would demonstrate that the same thing is still happening now by creating Virtual Cat (www.facebook.com/MyVirtualCat). I was surprised to discover something worse - false likes are coming from everywhere, including Canada, the US, the UK, and Australia. So even those carefully targeting their campaigns are likely being duped into spending real money on fake followers. Then when they try to reach their followers they have to pay again.

And it's possible to be a victim of fake likes without even advertising. Pages that end up on Facebook's "International Suggested Pages" are also easy targets for click-farms seeking to diversify their likes. tnw.co/NsflrC

Thanks to Henry, Grey, and Nessy for feedback on earlier drafts of this video.

All Comments (21)

@veritasium 10 years ago

PLEASE NOTE: I will now return to science videos. I posted this video here because when I observe a blatant disregard for the truth I have to do something. I hope to prevent people from having the same experience I did.
@raihanulIslamrana 7 years ago

I am from Dhaka, Bangladesh . But i am a real fan of Veritasium
@sabeenshahid2024 3 years ago

This definitely aged well.
@samudrajs5409 2 years ago

It's 2021. Facebook hasn't still fixed it. I run a FaceBook based science group and a page. Frustated for the same reason. Huge follower base, little to no engagement.
@DeyvsonMoutinhoCaliman 5 years ago

Mind blowing. When someone says something is a "fraud" I don't expect much, but in this case it was a legit demonstration.
@YusuphWickama 4 years ago

It's 2019 and facebook still does this. I just tested this this week
@mihirkagalkar8349 3 years ago

well looks like mr zuckey never fails to disappoint me every time
@MorteJachwe 2 years ago

I am austrian and right now I am very proud of my folks :D
@abdulmuktadir4447 6 years ago

here's a real like from Dhaka, Bangladesh.
@nonelost1 8 years ago

4:11 Next up, engagement farms!
@shwetaanand9539 3 years ago

Hi, Love and greetings from India. I watch your YouTube posts and eagerly wait for the next. Seriously I go through your uploads repeatedly if the topic is difficult. I am 48 by now and your posts reminds me of my school days. I thank you for your excellent and explanatory videos.
@LIONGOD 2 years ago

this still holds up 8 years later, and not just for Facebook
@AsapSCIENCE 10 years ago

Really fantastic video, Derek! It's frustrating to know how little FB cares about its users.
@madhuvottery7478 4 years ago

The dislikes are from Facebook. I'm a real fan of Veritasium from India, by the way.
@stevenwilliams1915 2 years ago

Kudos to you Derek! You always live up to your channel's name. Hats off for standing up to Goliath!
@Alt3Tab 3 years ago

meanwhile, its 2020 and the ***show continues. Found this channel while on a knowledge rampage and this really nice. keep up the good work.
@purpleperplexer 4 years ago

"US State Department paid $630,000 to acquire 2M fans." The bureaucracy is at it again.
@TheAdriyaman 7 years ago

I work at a click farm.
@nahkampfsocke315 1 year ago

I am Austrian! Proud to see that your page gets so much attention in our country🙏🏼
@eransasson20 2 years ago

Well done !! Pedagogy about how social networks thrive is more than needed.