We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
BROADCASTER MIRIAM O’CALLAGHAN has reached a settlement with Meta over false and misleading advertisements that appeared on Facebook.
The High Court heard today that the RTÉ presenter and Meta Platforms Ireland Limited have resolved proceedings which were issued as a result of false and misleading ads published on Meta’s social media platforms by malicious third parties.
In a statement read in court, Facebook’s parent company acknowledged that the advertisements have been extremely damaging to Ms O’Callaghan.
“Meta Platforms Ireland accepts and regrets that the publication of these ads has caused Ms O’Callaghan distress and embarrassment, and regrets any wider concerns and distress caused by the ads,” Meta’s counsel Joe Jeffers Bl said.
“Meta Platforms Ireland apologises unreservedly to Ms O’Callaghan.”
The statement added that O’Callaghan is satisfied that the publication of the fake advertisements using her name and image appears to have ceased.
As part of the agreement, Meta agreed to create an additional scam ad reporting tool, which will allow Irish users to submit more detailed reports on misleading advertisements for review.
Speaking to reporters outside the Four Courts in Dublin, O’Callaghan said she was happy and relieved that the stressful matter had been resolved after five years.
“I’m very happy with the settlement, I’m very relieved. First and foremost, the ads are gone, they’re taken down. That was the most important thing, that I got them down, to protect my name, to protect my reputation.
“It’s a great day” – Miriam O’Callaghan happy and relieved after reaching a settlement with Facebook over scam ads by third parties on the platform. The social media company apologised unreservedly to Ms O’Callaghan. @thejournal_ie pic.twitter.com/aVuanPKh1e
— Céimin Burke (@CeiminB) February 25, 2022
“But most importantly, as well, was to make sure that there was some kind of a new tool, so other Irish people didn’t go through what I had to go through.
“I’m absolutely delighted with this new reporting tool. I think it will make it much easier to report scam and misleading ads,” O’Callaghan said.
She advised anyone who is impacted by misleading ads to use the new tool.
O’Callaghan’s solicitor Paul Tweed said the settlement has “achieved our client’s objectives in terminating the fake ads, taking steps to afford Irish users more protection and to totally vindicate her own reputation.”
The ads featured misleading and defamatory claims that inaccurately suggested O’Callaghan had left her job with RTÉ’s Prime Time programme to promote skin care products.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Not that I particularly care about Miriam’s ‘distress or embarrassment’, but the fact that there is no vetting or approval process for advertisements on Facebook or Instagram is ludicrous. The platforms are absolutely riddled with unmoderated scams and spam.
@Nicky O’Donnell: 100% correct – FB is full of phishing scams and cloned pages running adverts yet they block if they hear a bit of music in a video or 101 other things posted again their own agenda community guidelines. Their failure to have any vetting or reporting process actually does them a long term disservice as more people will ignore all adverts because of the number of fakes and scams that FB carry.
Faked and suspect adverts and cloned pages and phishing scams are a regular on FB to the extent that I treat every FB advert as misleading or a scam of some sort when the content seems too good to be true. Free this or that if you answer a few questions … And allowing a new page or account to be set up using the profile picture and/or name of an existing account without proper checks seems to me to facilitate phishing scams and identity theft. I am actually a fan of FB for keeping in touch with family and friends abroad but too often I get a message saying “if you get a friend request from me it is not me”. FB need to be ruthless in applying advert standards or no one will advertise with them as more people like me try and ignore the FB pushed adverts, pages and content.
I’m constantly leaving angry emojis on fake ads, it’s the only way to warn others. They delete comments linking to review pages. As well as comments from disgruntled and scammed “customers”.
There is zero consequences for these scammers. They just open more and more new pages.
Her primetime programme regularly gets it wrong
These ads are still appearing on a daily basis. Facebook are really starting to annoy me.
It amazes me that when placing an Ad with FB a picture has to be of a particular size and meet certain requirements, for instance, no more than 20% of the picture can contain text, otherwise the ad cannot be published because it doesn’t meet the FB requirements, but yet obvious scam adverts are published without any censorship. FB is a pox.
have your say