The ghostly white creature curled up on a scale is almost unrecognizable in the Facebook post offering it for sale. Closer inspection reveals it to be a dead pangolin.
The animal, one of the world’s most endangered and trafficked mammals, has been stripped of its scales and is being advertised through a Thai account selling “seasonal wild delicacies.”
The message is one of dozens examined by AFP which illustrate what conservationists call widespread illegal wildlife trafficking on social media platforms, particularly those owned by Facebook’s parent company, Meta.
A report from several NGOs released Monday accuses Meta of hosting “the largest illegal wildlife trade marketplace” in the world and effectively encouraging this trade by sharing advertising revenue with users and allowing them subscription models.
The report follows a recent study by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC), which warned that Facebook is now “the central public infrastructure through which online wildlife trafficking is concentrated, discovered and expanded.”
Meta declined to answer questions from AFPand highlighted policies that restrict the sale of endangered species on its platforms.
But conservationists say those policies have done little to prevent Meta’s platforms from being used for illegal wildlife trade.
The GI-TOC study revealed more than 20,000 advertisements for more than 260,000 wildlife products on social media platforms between April 2024 and March 2026.
Nearly three-quarters of them were on Facebook, and many stayed connected even after being reported, said Russell Gray, a data scientist and environmentalist who co-wrote GI-TOC’s April report.
“Even the unredacted accounts and groups that we publicly reported on in the report are still active,” he said. AFP.
“Staggering”
Environmentalists and wildlife experts said it was common.
“I have not received any response or seen any action taken,” said Tom Taylor, operations director of Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand.
“Accounts that blatantly break the law must be closed and investigations into the criminal activities behind them must be opened.”
Environmental advocates say Meta not only fails to remove content that violates its policies, but may actually encourage them by allowing popular accounts to monetize content through ad revenue and subscription models.
“This monetization of content pushed by Facebook and Instagram actually incentivizes people to commit illegal acts,” said Daniel Stiles, an independent wildlife trafficking investigator.
“The more they interact and engage with their account, the more money they can earn,” added Stiles, co-author of the report released Monday by NGOs including Freeland, Education for Nature Vietnam and International Wildlife Trust.
Meta does not make accounts that are part of its content monetization programs public.
But the people signed up for its subscription program are publicly identifiable and include an account apparently in Laos purporting to show poaching of wild animals, including pangolins.
“How Meta can allow this is mind-boggling,” Stiles said.
“From lip service”
Animal and wildlife products are offered on Meta platforms including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, according to a study.
But other platforms, including TikTok and Snapchat – popular due to their disappearing posting settings – are also increasingly used by traffickers.
AFP reviewed examples offering everything from chimpanzees intended as pets to rhino horn for traditional medicine and pangolins intended for consumption.
Some of the content is oblique: Sellers often post images of animals or parts for sale without any pricing or explanation. Interested commenters are encouraged to message them directly.
But much of the content is clear, including a public Facebook account offering dead pangolins, monitor lizards and other protected wildlife for consumption in Thailand.
The algorithmic nature of social media platforms means that users who engage with wildlife trafficking accounts are offered more services.
After reviewing only a handful of public accounts promoting illegal wildlife trade, a AFP The journalist’s Facebook feed began regularly showing posts selling endangered wildlife and animal parts.
Meta was among 11 tech companies that announced this month they would work to eliminate wildlife trafficking on their sites.
But the company has been a member of the Coalition to Stop Online Wildlife Trafficking since 2018, and the problem has continued to get worse, said Steve Galster, founder of Freeland.
He warned that the latest announcement risked being lip service.
“Until Meta is forced to rid its platforms of illegal wildlife trade and prove that it is not profiting from it, the online wildlife trade will only get worse.”
