Instagram Scams: How to Stay Safe and Avoid Tricks- DigitalTreed

Instagram scams have become overwhelmingly popular with cybercriminals. Social media has made it easy for strangers to earn your trust by impersonating people or brands. Sometimes, these fraudsters spend weeks talking with you before pulling their scam. As this risk rises, you’ll need to know the signs of a scam to avoid being robbed of your money and/or identity.

In this article, we will take a look at:

As our digital lives continue to grow, online scams have evolved to become more deceptive. Instagram phishing is just one of many believable schemes that can easily claim you as a victim. So, learning how to identify an Instagram scam is essential for all users on the platform. Considering the importance of online security, it’s wise to explore the use of a top VPN to add an extra layer of protection to your digital presence

What are Instagram Scams?

Instagram scammers use various methods to coerce you into being a victim of theft or an attack. Usually, these cybercriminals are seeking something valuable, like money or confidential information. Some may even try to use you as a vehicle to spread malicious code to loved ones or co-workers.

In any case, you’ll find yourself making a decision that could affect yourself and those around you. The trouble is that the scammers don’t always make it easy to remain rational. Effective scams tend to tap into your emotions and pretend to be trustworthy. The best scammers pay close attention to detail and make it hard to dispute their authenticity.

Your best defense is to be aware of the more popular schemes on Instagram.

Instagram Phishing Risks

Instagram phishing is the most common way scammers hijack your identity and personal accounts. Phishing involves a message that urges or persuades you to take action, usually requesting money or account login details.

Fraudulent messages are disguised as a trusted person or brand you might know, and the illusion of authenticity can be just enough to trick you into giving the hacker what they want.

Instagram itself has identified the following scams:

Romance – fraudsters ask you for money after gaining your trust, usually through means of flirting or seduction.
Lottery – scammers claim you’ve won something and request a fee to reward you.
Job – fraud offers to help you earn money if you provide banking info for direct payment.
Loan – schemes claim to let you borrow money instantly for an advance fee.
False Investment – scams lead you to make a small investment with claims of growing your money. Cash-flipping scams are especially relevant on the platform.
Paid Subscription fraud – deceives you into paying for discounted access to services like music or movie streaming.

Other specific scams might be a threat to you as well:

Fake Influencer sponsors – try to fool growing Instagrammers out of their banking details by pretending to be a real brand offering an advertising deal.
Instagram phishing email – scams might urge you to use a fake login link to appeal against the terms of service strike on your account. Other emails claim suspicious activity that they’ll ask you to log in and verify.
Giveaways – ask that you give personal info, make a payment, or log into a site in exchange for a prize.

As you can see, phishing relies on gaining your trust or playing on emotions to deceive you. If you’re not careful, you could easily be scared or coerced into becoming a victim.

It’s worth remembering that scammers don’t always rush their plots, and it might take anywhere from days to months before the scam launches.

Eventually, any Instagram fraud scheme has some sort of “ask.” This is the biggest red flag to look out for. If a brand or person has asked you to do something that might put you at risk, you might become a scam victim.

Scammed on Instagram? What to Do Next

If you’ve fallen for an Instagram scam or believe you might be a victim — you should take steps to minimize the damage.

This is because the personal information you’ve handed over could be used to:

Steal your identity
Drain your bank accounts
Breach any of your online accounts
Ruin your credit
Spread malware to people you know

With this knowledge, you can act quickly to lock the hacker out of your life long-term. You should also be able to undo some or all of the immediate problems they’ve caused you.

Here are some tips to take action:

Check your bank accounts and credit cards. Browse all your bank activity and statements for anything you don’t remember doing. A scammer who’s got your financial info might make transfers or purchases from your accounts. Don’t just look for big purchases — cybercrimes might keep their spending limited to small splurges. Sometimes, purchases as low as a few dollars have been discovered. If you’ve spotted anything odd, report it to your bank or credit institution to halt any future use.

Change your passwords. You’ll want to change your Instagram password to be safe. But you might have compromised several other accounts if you used a fake login form. If you’ve ever reused passwords and usernames, a scammer can break into more of your accounts. So, be sure to change passwords across all your essential accounts, like banking, social media, email, and anywhere you pay bills or shop online.

Use unique passwords for every online account. In addition to changing your passwords, be sure to make each one challenging and different. If it’s easy for you to remember, it might be easy for a hacker to guess. Passphrases filled with a variety of character types will help you stay secure. Random character strings are the absolute best option. To remember all of these new passwords, we suggest you use a secure online vault like Kaspersky Password Manager.

Check your credit and freeze it. Scammers have been known to create new bank accounts and incur all sorts of debt in your name. In case your identity has been stolen, it’s wise to check your credit scores and reports across all three of the major institutions. In the US, Experion, Equifax, and TransUnion each gather info differently, so you’ll want to check all of them (if you’re not a citizen of the United States, you should check your own country’s institutions). Freezing your credit is another vital step towards limiting the issues caused by known identity theft.

Use an ID theft checker service. Services like these will monitor any suspicious activity across your credit, tax returns, investments, etc. To keep an eye out for any other data breaches, Kaspersky Security Cloud offers constant monitoring and tips to protect yourself.

How to Avoid Scams on Instagram

Infographic listing ways in which you can avoid scams on Instagram

Recognizing the most common scams on Instagram is the first step in avoiding them.

There are other things you can also do to further protect yourself from falling victim to a cybercriminal on Instagram.

1. Make your account private

Your Instagram is set to “public” by default, allowing anyone to see your posts. To protect your privacy, set your account status to “private.” Then, only followers you approve can see your posts, make comments, find your posts via search, and send you direct messages.

Here’s how to make your Instagram account private.

Open the Instagram app.
Go to your homepage.
Tap on the hamburger menu (the three horizontal lines) in the upper right corner.
Choose Settings > Privacy.
Toggle Private Account to ON.

It is important to note that Instagram business accounts cannot be set to private.

2. Use strong passwords

There are a few rules regarding passwords that apply to all your online accounts: never use the same password on more than one account; always use a complex password rather than something easy to figure out; and don’t store your password list in an easily discoverable place.

To simplify your life, one good tool to use is a password manager. Whether it is the password manager built into your favorite browser or a third-party app, password managers help you create complicated, unique passwords and store them in a secure location.

3. Enable two-factor authentication

One of the best ways to protect your Instagram account from unwanted access is to enable two-factor authentication. When this security feature is turned on, it will take more than just knowing your login credentials to gain access to your account.

When someone tries to log in from an unrecognized device, they will need to provide a unique authentication code. This code is sent via an authenticator app on your smartphone.

To set up two-factor authentication on Instagram, do the following:

Open the Instagram app.
Go to your homepage.
Tap on the hamburger menu (the three horizontal lines) in the upper right corner.
Then choose Settings > Security > Two-Factor Authentication.
Select Get Started.
Choose your security method, either an Authentication App or a Text Message.

Follow the rest of the prompts to complete the setup.

4. Never click on suspicious links

If you receive an unsolicited email purporting to be from Instagram, make sure it is legitimate before you do anything else to avoid falling for a scammer’s strategies.

It is easy to verify legitimate emails from Instagram. Here’s how.

Open the Instagram app.
Go to your homepage.
Tap on the hamburger menu (the three horizontal lines) in the upper right corner.
Then choose Settings > Security > Emails From Instagram.

Any legitimate emails sent to you from Instagram will appear in either the “Security” or “Other” tab. If the email you received is listed in one of these places, you can be confident it is the real deal.

5. Only buy from verified profiles

Before you buy anything on Instagram, check to make sure the account you’re dealing with is verified. All legitimate brands on Instagram will take the time to complete this step.

You can easily do this by looking for the blue circle with a checkmark next to the account name.

Make sure you are only engaging with verified Instagram accounts.

Get in the habit of periodically checking your current Instagram logins. This will help you thwart unwanted account access before significant damage is done.

Check your login activity here:

Open the Instagram app.
Go to your homepage.
Tap on the hamburger menu (the three horizontal lines) in the upper right corner.
Then choose Settings > Security > Login Activity.

All current logins are displayed here. If you see a suspicious location, disconnect it by tapping “Log Out.”

7. Keep track of third-party apps

Over time, you have likely connected several third-party applications to your Instagram account. You should regularly review these applications to ensure no suspicious connections have been made.

Here’s how to review third-party applications.

Open the Instagram app.
Go to your homepage.
Tap on the hamburger menu (the three horizontal lines) in the upper right corner.
Then choose Settings > Security > Apps and Websites.

You’ll see a list of all active, expired, and removed third-party applications here. Delete any you do not recognize or no longer use.

8. Don’t respond to unsolicited direct messages

If your Instagram account is set to public, anyone can direct message (DM) you. This is an open invitation for scammers to easily reach you.

If you don’t want to make your account private, then be vigilant when engaging with unsolicited DMs from people you do not know or recognize.

If you suspect a DM to be a scam, you should report the account to Instagram and block the account. Once you block the account, the message will automatically disappear.

9. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is

There’s a reason this saying has been around forever. It usually (always?!) rings true. If you receive an incredible offer from somebody you don’t know, chances are it is a cybercriminal trying to scam you.

Heed this sage advice, and ignored the request. It will save you headaches and hassles later on.

What to Do If You Get Scammed on Instagram

Infographic listing steps you can take if you've been scammed

Even the most vigilant Instagram user might fall victim to a very clever Instagram scam. If you think you’ve been scammed on the ‘Gram, there are some things you should do.

Time is of the essence since a scammer can gain control of your online assets and do any of the following:

Drain your financial accounts
Rack up credit card charges
Infect your device and spread malware to friends and family
Ruin your credit
Steal your identity

The key is to act quickly, so you can minimize the damage.

Report the scam to Instagram

Instagram, and its parent company Facebook, have been dealing with scammers on their platforms for years. As such, Instagram makes it easy to report suspicious activity to them.

Each page Instagram displays has a Report option. Just click on it and follow the instructions.

Monitor your financial accounts

It is a good general practice to regularly monitor all your financial accounts. Oftentimes, scammers with access to your accounts will initiate a series of smaller transactions to test the waters before they move on to bigger, higher-value charges.

By keeping a close eye on your bank account, PayPal account, credit cards, and the like, you can identify the little problems and put a stop to things fast.

Change your password

If you think your Instagram account has been breached, then changing your Instagram password should be your first move. But other accounts might be compromised, too, especially if you re-use the same password on multiple websites.

As a general rule, anytime you tangle with a cybercriminal, you should immediately change your passwords on all sensitive accounts, including your bank and credit card companies.

Install antivirus software on your devices

One strategy scammers like to use is accessing your devices and installing malware on them. Anytime you click on a suspicious link, you open the door for this to happen.

You can prevent malware infections by installing and running a reputable antivirus program on all your devices. If you’re not sure which antivirus is right for you, check out our article on the top antivirus programs.

If you want to download one right now, we recommend Kaspersky. Why? Kaspersky is a highly regarded name in cybersecurity, and its antivirus software works on all devices. It also offers real-time protection and a host of other security features.

Consider an identity theft monitoring service

With identity theft at an all-time high, many people are rightly concerned with the damage that comes with having your identity stolen.

Although no service can prevent identity theft from happening, several companies monitor for suspicious use of your data and alert you when they notice something.

One such company is LifeLock. You can read more about what LifeLock does in our LifeLock review. You can also check out their identity theft monitoring services by visiting their website.

Staying Safe from Instagram Scams

Instagram is a fun platform to share pics and stories with friends and family. It is also a place ripe for bad guys to scam you.

Your best defense against Instagram scams is a good offense. Understand the types of scams that are out there, be skeptical of unsolicited emails and direct messages, keep a close eye on your financial accounts, and safeguard your devices and accounts with good online hygiene practices.

These common-sense strategies will help keep you safe on Instagram. If you want to get rid of the app forever, you can also permanently delete your Instagram account.