Pregnant Mom Stabbed 70 Times, Marine Vet Shot — The Dark Side of Facebook Marketplace Meets

Move over, Craiglist. A new classifieds platform is in the hunt to earn the dubious distinction as the most crime-ridden meetup space in America.

Facebook’s Marketplace is now directly linked to at least 13 homicides since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and police have tracked hundreds of robberies back to phony interest in used consumer products.

Three years after Meta launched aggressive features to compete with Craigslist and OfferUp, analysts say Marketplace’s algorithmic approach to prioritizing engagement and transaction volume over safety is exposing users to greater risks.

Here is what going on.