ARAs part of a new feature that Instagram introduced earlier this month, the online social media platform has taken steps to improve user awareness around suspicious activity and impersonation attempts that may be targeting people online. As scammers continue to find new and increasingly savvy ways to extort people for personal details and financial information, this latest feature is hoping to alert more people towards ensuring their accounts are kept safe.
Suspicious Activity Identified
With this new feature, Instagram will advise users through notices and warnings when they suspect an account of being involved in scams or suspicious activities. These include:
- Sending an advisory security warning if an account attempting to follow you is potentially engaging in impersonation attempts or scamming activities.
- Sending a security warning if an account Instagram suspects to be deceptive sends you a direct message.
- Alerting users if a link appears to be suspicious, with a pop-up message advising you to be careful and review for trustworthiness.
While the notices do not stop users from interacting with potentially suspicious users, they are put in place to encourage critical thinking and allow users more time to review content. Instagram also advises that users are fully versed in making use of the Security Check Up feature, which can support with strong passwords, two factor authentication and strong recovery information.
Responding to a Phishing Scam
If you suspect you have been targeted by a phishing scam, here are some steps to take:
- Reach out to your bank immediately if you think your bank details have been compromised.
- Change all your account passwords, even if you believe they have not been affected.
- Keep a record of the incident by writing down what occurred or taking screenshots of messages and websites.
- Report the incident to the police or Action Fraud.
- Report it to the social media platform. You can visit Report Harmful Content for more information about how to report to various platforms.
If you want to know more about cyber security and best practice you can find lots of information on our security page that has downloadable resources and free guidance around a number of different scenarios.
