Mark Cuban regularly receives emails from people who purchased a nonexistent $294 diabetes cure advertised using AI-generated deepfakes of his face and voice, the 68-year-old billionaire investor revealed on an August episode of the Pivot podcast hosted by Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway.
“Every single week I get emails from little old men and ladies saying, ‘Will my cure for diabetes work?’ or ‘I just ordered your cure for diabetes for $294,’” Cuban said. He attributed the ads to Meta’s Facebook platform and argued the company knowingly permits the scams to continue.
Cuban noted that some ads include disclaimers stating the on-screen person is AI-generated and the content is entertainment. However, he argued this disclaimer comes too late to prevent the pitch from working. “And to Facebook, that’s good enough,” he said, adding that Meta’s tolerance for such fraud reveals the company’s organizational culture.
Cuban co-founded Cost Plus Drugs, a legitimate online pharmacy selling low-cost generic medications, which may explain why scammers target his identity.
On November 6, 2025, Reuters reported on internal Meta documents revealing the company expected approximately $16 billion—roughly 10% of its 2024 revenue—to come from ads promoting scams and prohibited products. According to the documents, users across Meta’s apps were exposed to roughly 15 billion “higher risk” ads daily, defined as those with obvious fraud markers. A late 2024 document valued that category at about $7 billion annually.
Meta’s own safety staff estimated in a May 2025 presentation that the company’s platforms play a role in one-third of successful scams in the U.S. The documents indicate Meta’s automated systems require at least a 95% confidence level that an account is running a scam before banning the advertiser. Below that threshold, suspected scammers can continue by paying higher per-ad rates.
Meta spokesman Andy Stone disputed the characterization, telling Reuters the documents “present a selective view that distorts Meta’s approach to fraud and scams.” He described the 10% estimate as “rough and overly-inclusive” and noted that user complaints about scam ads fell 58% over the prior 18 months. Stone also stated Meta removed more than 134 million scam ads in 2025.
The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating Meta regarding advertising tied to financial fraud, according to the documents.
Key facts
- Cuban says he receives weekly emails from people who bought fake $294 diabetes cures using AI deepfakes of his likeness
- Meta documents show the company expected $16 billion from scam ads in 2024, roughly 10% of annual revenue
- Users saw approximately 15 billion “higher risk” ads daily across Meta platforms
- Meta’s safety staff estimated the platform plays a role in one-third of successful U.S. scams
- Meta requires 95% confidence before banning scammers; suspected scammers below that threshold can continue by paying more
- SEC is investigating Meta over advertising tied to financial fraud