Seven Japanese Ministries Order Five SNS Platforms to Curb Celebrity Scam Ads

On August 7, 2026, seven ministries including the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications and the Digital Agency jointly required major social media platform operators to strengthen measures against fraudulent ads that impersonate celebrities and other public figures. The companies covered include US-based Google, LINE Yahoo, US-based Meta, TikTok and X. The requirements include faithfully implementing advertiser identity verification, disclosing relevant information to users and thoroughly handling deletion requests.

Each company must submit a written response detailing its specific implementation measures to the Digital Agency by October 16, and file a report summarizing implementation volumes and other matters by March 2027.

On the same day, LINE Yahoo released the results of a survey on special fraud awareness. The survey found that about 40 percent of respondents said they are aware of SNS-type investment scams. LINE Yahoo noted that because message content within LINE cannot be verified, once users are lured into specific groups, it becomes difficult to proactively respond to suspicious solicitations. In response, the company has strengthened ad screening and measures to suspend impersonating accounts, and urges users to voluntarily report accounts suspected of fraud.