Intro insta is free 

It's a great platform for showcasing images and now also video 

Pros: Superb way of discovering new creatives 

Great way of meeting fellow photographers 

Powerful tool to get new business, sales of images and building a brand 

Cons: has moved to compete with tikok thru videos

Copying pasting videos from TikTok platform

Algorithm  seems to be changing faster than the weather 

Now to the scary part 

Subject to hacking of accounts 

Identity theft

IP Theft 

How : hackers seem to take control of users accounts by sending a message to all of their followers and here are some of the ways 

1. Need help to get account back 


2. They have made money on crypto and you can too 


3. Been accepted as an ambassador or similar 

This message can go to all your followers and they also post stories and actual posts about the same 

If you also view a story they will then message you also as you are flagged as active 

Seems to be a real person sending the messages and not a bot

Have been having conversions with followers 

Have also told users who setup a new account and contacted to to try and get your account back .. hahaha etc 

They fool followers into thinking that it’s the real person who needs help 

They have access to all your previous conversations on the Platform so be careful what messages you send on insta as it is all there 

Asks them to either click a link or send a screenshot of some sort 

This is believed to be used as a way to get around two step authentication ( how I don’t quite know )

Once they have access to your account they then start sharing actually images you have posted , even been known to post personal / family images to increase chance of audience thinking it’s actually the real person and these images again contain that they made money on crypto 

You audience are now the target and they want to catch them out and start the web of expansion of this hack 

Insta can be linked to your commercial business , website or store so this has the potential to also be compromised 

They have been known to send you a WhatsApp message demanding money to give your account back ( some have paid as it’s their business )

Years to build up a following now gone as you can effectively say goodbye to your insta account 

Why?

Insta are impossible to contact 

You deal with AI not a real person 

Even with two factor auth in place it’s makes no difference 

It’s also been known to be that if you don’t have a proper photo of yourself as a profile then there is less chance but there is little chance in the first place 

Fill in online questionnaire and insta come  back with a reply that there is nothing unusual on this  account 

Cannot report it as a hacked account 

Your Facebook is still active even tho both platforms are owned by meta .. why ?

Why hasn’t insta recognized that this issue is so widespread 

People will stop using the platform 

You can make a new account and tell purple you are hacked but with no followers who is going to see it ?

What can you do ?

Pay attention , they feed on people clicking without thinking ?

Don’t click on links that your gut tells you could be sus

Enable two factor authentication 

If you want to keep your following then create your own mailing list where you have control 

Find another platform to use 

Or don’t and continue to use Instagram for what it is intended to be ! A free social platform 

But also be aware that these scammers are also targeting youtube in the form of replies from creators ( fake profiles with a link )