Australia's securities regulator, ASIC, has removed over 14,000 scam and phishing websites in two years, with crypto scams comprising about 20% of that total. ASIC plans to extend its crackdown from just website takedowns to include fraudulent ads on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. This initiative is part of a broader effort to protect Australian consumers from increasingly sophisticated fraud schemes. In 2024 alone, Australians lost nearly $1 billion to investment scams, which now feature tactics such as 'AI washing'. Of the removed sites, approximately 3,015 were associated with crypto scams. ASIC's Deputy Chair highlighted the necessity of extending their capabilities to tackle scams more effectively on social media, stating that traditional methods alone are inadequate to combat the growing threat of online scams.

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