Gymshark tycoon issues X fake ads alert and blasts 'misinformation'

Yahoo

18-05-2025

Midland Gymshark tycoon Ben Francis has warned his X followers over fake ads using his image.
The gymwear company founder said his picture was used on the social media site to illustrate articles falsely claiming to have been produced by the BBC.
Dragon's Den judge Steven Bartlett has also been the subject of similar bogus ads on X, which was formerly Twitter and is owned by the world's richest man, Elon Musk.
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Francis, who is from Bromsgrove, co-founded Gymshark as a student at Aston University. His fortune was estimated at £725 million in last year's Sunday Times Rich List 40 Under 40.
He posted on X: "There are some fake ads on this platform using my image for supposed BBC articles. As I say, these are fake and if you click on them, it takes you somewhere completely different. The more people that report these ads, the more likely X is to take down this misinformation."
Bartlett responded to the fake ads featuring his likeness on X earlier this month, urging people to take steps to protect themselves against "scams".
He posted: "Over recent months I've had thousands of messages flagging AI videos and paid ads that use my image on every social platform.
"The crazy part is that these aren't normal posts - they are promoted adverts that are being boosted using Facebook, X or YouTube's advertising tools - this means someone somewhere is paying Meta and X to target people with scams, and Meta and X are collecting that money.
"I've received so many (too many) messages from people who have lost money because of these scams - some of which are absolutely heartbreaking - and the horrible truth is that the people most at risk are some of the most vulnerable in society.
" If the platforms can tag my face in a photo, automatically, it can spot it in a scam advert. If it can name a song in one second, it can spot an AI voice clone in a video."
X tells advertisers: "Advertisers on X are responsible for their X ads. This means following all applicable laws and regulations, creating honest ads, and advertising safely and respectfully. This article describes our advertising policies. Our policies require you to follow the law, but they are not legal advice."