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Australian mineral wealth billionaire Andrew Forrest faced a major setback in his legal battle against Meta on Friday. The move comes as government prosecutors dropped criminal charges against a social media giant over fraudulent cryptocurrency ads featuring Mehta's face, amid continuing concerns that tech companies are not doing enough. Fight against the questionable plans that still plague their platform.
Andrew Forrest has filed a criminal lawsuit over a cryptocurrency Facebook ad featuring Mehta's likeness. … [+]
important facts
Chief Justice Julie Wager of the District Court of Western Australia on Friday accepted an application by the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (CDPP) to discontinue three criminal charges brought by Mr Forrest against Mehta.
Forrest, better known as Twiggy, has been accused of breaching Australia's money laundering laws by the social media giant for failing to act on fraudulent cryptocurrency ads using his name and likeness on Facebook. accused of doing so.
Private prosecutions are rare in Australia, and criminal prosecutions are usually state-driven and usually confined to the lower courts, with serious charges like those brought by Forrest being tried in the High Court and by the CDPP. Needs to be prosecuted.
A CDPP spokesperson did not provide details on why the case was halted, but told Reuters there was insufficient evidence to proceed.
As reported by the Guardian, Mr Forrest said the incident “shows that Facebook is above Australian law” and that “increasingly sophisticated technology on social media platforms is not being held accountable”. “Frauds will continue to be prevalent among people who fall for them,” he added. ”
A Meta spokesperson told Reuters that fraud is a complex issue that affects all platforms, and that the company “sympathizes with those affected” by the cryptocurrency scheme. We do not wish for any fraud to occur and will continue to respond in the future.” We work tirelessly to prevent them and protect our users. ”
Points to note
Mr Forrest vowed to continue fighting and campaigning for legal changes that would allow action to be taken against foreign-owned social media platforms like Facebook. He accused Facebook of “hurting innocent people” and “doing nothing about this fraudulent advertising.” “Politicians must take responsibility on behalf of ordinary mothers and fathers” who lost their life savings to these scams, he said. A separate civil lawsuit filed by Forrest against Meta over advertising is ongoing in California.
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Forest is worth an estimated $18.7 billion. His fortune makes him the second richest person in Australia after another mining magnate, Gina Rinehart, and the 102nd richest person in the world. Most of Forrest's wealth comes from iron ore giant Fortescue Metals Group, which he founded in 2003 and has recently pivoted to green energy. He and his wife Nicola confirmed their separation last year, but said the separation had “no impact” on their business or charity work, including his Minderoo Foundation.
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