Instagram is the fourth most popular social media platform in the world, with over one billion monthly active users. Almost everyone, from celebrities to your kids, has an Instagram account. This global success makes it a very lucrative target for threat actors.
According to BBC, the scamming has worsened over the past year, with the Instagram fraud reports increasing by 50% since the coronavirus outbreak began in 2020.
Scammers just need a handful of those people who will help someone without thinking. And since they’re not after money, just a bit of someone’s time, they already have one foot in the door.
The latest scam involves Instagram backstories. Fraudsters will ask you for help, tell their backstory, and put their fate in your hands. Here are some of the Instagram stories that fraudsters employ to target users:
- "I’m launching my own product line."
- "I’m in a competition and need you to vote for me."
- "I’m trying to get verified on Instagram and need people to confirm my fanbase with a link."
- "I need a help link to get into Instagram on my other phone." This is the most common tactic employed by scammers.
- "I’m contesting for an ambassadorship spot at an online influencers program." This one is surprisingly popular, with fake influencers everywhere.
Scammers try to get access to your Instagram account by sending you a suspicious link, either as an Instagram direct message or via email. They will then ask you not to click the link but merely take a screenshot and send the image back to them.
The link is a legitimate Instagram “forgotten password” URL for your account, and fraudsters want you to screenshot it so they can use the URL to reset your password, take over your account, and lock you out.
Regardless, any requests for link screenshots should be treated with extreme suspicion. Whether product lines or ambassador programs, you can safely ignore these messages. If you think you’ve been scammed, report it to Instagram. Change your password and enable two-factor authentication. If you reuse passwords, a scammer could break into more of your accounts. Change those passwords.
