On May 30, 2024, Flamengo Online's YouTube channel posted a video (archive) titled “Do Dana Perino Bloom CBD Gummies Really Work? ((Severe Warning)) Dana Perino CBD – Dana Perino CBD Gummies” Posted. The same channel reposted the clip on June 13th (Archived) and June 19th (Archived).
In the video, an unidentified woman falsely claims that Fox News host Dana Perino owns a line of CBD gummies. The woman also falsely claimed that Perino's gummy products treat dementia and directed viewers to “official” product purchase links in the video description and pinned comments.
“So basically today I'm here to talk about Dana Perino CBD Gummies,” the woman in the video said. “Stay tuned. I've also put the official webpage below this video, so if you want to buy it, you can go there directly. But guys, what's really great about these gummies is that they can help treat dementia. ”. ” Later in the video, she made further misleading claims about the product's ability to treat Alzheimer's disease.
As we previously reported, Perino is not involved in CBD gummies. Additionally, we found no reliable evidence linking CBD gummies to treating dementia or Alzheimer's disease. The Alzheimer's Society UK website states: 'Research shows that products such as cannabis and cannabis oil (CBD oil) can stop, slow, reverse or prevent the disease that causes dementia. does not exist.''
We contacted the Flamengo Online YouTube channel via WhatsApp to ask about promoting the scam video, but have not received a response at the time of writing. We will update this story as more details become available.
YouTube response to Snope
In response to our inquiries about the video, a YouTube spokesperson emailed Snopes on June 28: “YouTube has clear policies prohibiting fraud and other deceptive practices, and we strictly enforce them. After review, the video shared by Snopes does not violate the law.” our policy. ”
The spokesperson also provided us with a link to a page hosting YouTube's “Spam, Deceptive, and Fraud Policy.”
However, its policy page provided a full explanation of the three videos uploaded to the Flamengo Online YouTube channel. The page says, “YouTube does not allow spam, fraud, or other deceptive practices that leverage the YouTube community and that are designed to trick others into leaving YouTube for another site. We also don't allow content that violates this policy. Please report it.”
Snopes reported the “Dana Perino CBD Gummies” video to YouTube as recommended by our policy page. Quoting directly from YouTube's policies, the “primary purpose” of the Flamengo Online scammers' video is for an unidentified woman to falsely claim that Perino has approved CBD gummies for dementia treatment. After listening to “trick someone into leaving YouTube for another site.''
After receiving the spokesperson's response, I emailed YouTube again, but did not receive a response within five days.
The enormity of this fraud
Our past research into these specific scams has revealed a large-scale operation of YouTubers posting fraudulent videos under the guise of affiliate marketing.
The scam involved Flamengo Online and at least dozens of other popular YouTube channels. Most of these channels originally built their subscriber base by posting music videos and sports clips. After the channel owner grew the number of subscribers to tens, hundreds of thousands, or even millions of users, someone controlling the channel started posting deceptive videos about pharmaceuticals. The video displayed an external link to the product purchase page, which was included in both the video description and the pinned comment. These products didn't have familiar names, and Americans couldn't find them at their local pharmacies.
Many of the fraudulent videos showed signs that the number of views and likes may have been fraudulently displayed. Additionally, the positive comments on the video also appeared to be fake. For example, one video on the Flamengo online channel displayed a comment with an incomplete sentence: “Thank you for the great information. I will.” A completely different account also submitted a new comment (not a reply) that ended the other user's sentence, writing, “Let's try CBD gummies soon.” In other words, someone appeared to be logging in and out of multiple accounts, copying and pasting pre-written comments, as they had done on many other videos, all of which appeared below the video. This was to embed positive comments.
The user managing the channel posted a video of the same unidentified woman who falsely informed viewers that Dana Perino CBD Gummies were a dementia drug. Videos on the channel also featured other men and women promoting additional medications. Many of the products featured in scam videos promised miraculous results for many medical issues. Each channel's “About” tab typically displays its owner's physical location as Argentina, Brazil, Guatemala, Peru, or another Central or South American country.
The same woman who promoted the false “Dana Perino CBD” claims also appeared on many other channels, including the @jostland YouTube channel.
Other prominent YouTube channels that currently or have posted at least dozens or hundreds of fraudulent videos include Astromuss Music, Lyrics de Músicas, HD Hits, MAURICIO VIDEOSHD, and SOM DOS STATUSS.
Channel owner says scammer paid subscription fee
In April 2024, we contacted several popular YouTube channels involved in the scam and asked them why they hosted the videos. One of our inquiries to the popular channel Alda Recalde, via X's direct message, asked why its owner had recently deleted or made private its library of fraudulent videos. The channel owner responded, “The contract has ended.''
In other words, the owner allows other users to promote their videos to the channel's large subscriber base (a base that originally subscribed to the channel because they were interested in music videos, not a scam) indicated to us that they received money on a contractual basis. . This information means that the people appearing in the fraudulent videos likely do not own their own channels.
Snopes submitted evidence of the fraudulent network to YouTube in April. Our evidence included detailed spreadsheets containing information on dozens of channels and lengthy emails documenting a wealth of data about the scam. Basically, we've done a lot of information gathering to help YouTube understand what scams are. But at the time, a YouTube spokesperson responded: “Snopes-powered channels do not violate our policies and will remain on our platform.”
As of early July, the aforementioned channels and many of their fraudulent videos remained available to YouTube users. These videos may also appear prominently in Google search results for people looking for helpful treatments for medical problems.
