Centrelink investigators are trawling the social media accounts of people on welfare to catch out fraudsters, the federal government has confirmed.

Contractors employed by Centrelink to scan the Facebook pages, Twitter streams and eBay accounts of customers have dredged up more than $2 million in fraud the Daily Telegraph reported.

People like to be liked, especially children. This is Facebook's attraction. Credit:Bloomberg

The operations could nab a fraudster via a guileless 'Thank God It's Friday' Facebook post at the end of a work week from a recipient of unemployment benefits, or perhaps an uninhibited single posting voraciously about their solo life while claiming benefits for dependents they don't have.

In one case, a couple who claimed they were single to receive single payments were caught out by Centrelink's social media surveillance investigators when they announced on Twitter that they were in a relationship and expecting a baby, according to the Department of Human Services.