Your Instagram account has been hacked and you are wondering why this happened to you? Consulates, you are not the only one: the social network is often targeted by hackers and malicious people who steal user data and make them public, or block the profile and also prevent its recovery, which can only take place on blackmail.
In the last few hours, a huge database has been discovered containing contact information for millions of Instagram accounts, including influencers, celebrities and companies.
The database, available on Amazon Web Services, was public and not password protected, therefore accessible to anyone. A list that contained data from over 49 million people. These also include private contact info such as the email address and telephone number of famous people, singers, actors, bloggers and influencers.
How did the hackers get the personal data of the users? The company has not made any comments. Two years ago, Instagram admitted that a security bug in its developer API had allowed web pirates to obtain emails and phone numbers from 6 million accounts, which were then sold for Bitcoin. Instagram later blocked the APIs and said goodbye to many apps built on its platform (such as those that help people understand if their followers follow or interact with them, analyze their audience or find the best hashtags) just to protect. user privacy.
Instagram: how they can steal your profile
Data theft booms typically hit mostly popular profiles (with at least 15,000 followers). An Instagram scam was recently discovered that starts from a fake email sent by an alleged Instagram asking the user to verify the account to get the blue check. As soon as the poor victim clicks on the Verify Account button, however, he is directed to a phishing site that requires the entry of personal data. In this way, cybercriminals are able to enter the Instagram account of the unfortunates and in possession of all the content and private data.
How to defend yourself? The first thing to know is that the verification badge is given by Instagram only to those who explicitly request it and only to certain accounts, which must be famous characters or brands with a large following. Instagram will never send an email to its subscribers proposing the verification of the account to get the infamous check: if, therefore, you get such a message, know that it is a trap set by malicious people.
Instagram confirmed that a bug in the platform may have allowed the same hackers who leaked 3 naked Justin Bieber photos from Selena Gomez's account to obtain email addresses and contact information from millions of accounts.
Instagram scam: account thefts are very frequent
But this is only the latest of the scams targeting Instagram users, and not even the most serious. Last year, a flaw in the system caused a group of hackers to infiltrate the accounts of many users, infecting the Instagram of celebrities and ordinary people.
Hours after the hack, hackers created a public database called Doxagram that allowed users to find victims' phone numbers for $ 10 each. The list of hacked VIPs ended up with actors, sportsmen and singers, whose contact information was leaked on the darknet. These include Emma Watson, Emilia Clarke, Zac Efron, Leonardo Di Caprio, Channing Tatum, Harry Styles, Katy Perry, Adele, Britney Spears, Rihanna, Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Snoop Dogg, Zidane, David Beckham, Neymar and Ronaldinho.
Mike Krieger, co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Instagram, made it clear in a blog post that hackers did not have access to the passwords of affected users, and reassured that he had quickly fixed the bug and was working with the law to find and punish the guilty.
“However, we urge you to be vigilant about the security of your account and to move with caution if you observe suspicious activity, such as incoming calls from unknown numbers, messages or emails. Any problems and unusual activity can be reported to Instagram from the profile "..." menu and selecting Report a problem> Spam or abuse. "
Here's everything you need to know about Instagram hacking attacks and how to protect yourself.
Hacked Instagram Account: Help!
I myself came across hacked Instagram accounts: several good people I follow out of the blue have been posting prying or spam content that invaded my newsfeed. Visiting their profile it was immediately clear that someone had stolen their login details to sneak into the account.
Recognizing a hacked Instagram account is very simple as the new content posted by the hacker is mostly sexual. Not always, however, the poor unfortunate realizes in time what is happening until Instagram denies him access for "wrong password". After years of taking care of his account, this discovery could send him into crisis.
You haven't given your password to anyone and you've always been careful about the apps you use, yet a hacker has targeted your Instagram account. Because? I'm about to give you the answer but first, don't panic. Your account is not lost forever and, in a few simple steps, you will be able to take back your beloved Instagram by defeating the hacker threat.
Hacked Instagram account: how to notice it and the risks
When an Instagram account is stolen, the legitimate owner who wants to log in from the app is invited to log in by entering the data (which usually does not happen).
Upon entering the credentials, Instagram will reply that the password is incorrect. In the meantime, if two-factor authentication is enabled, Instagram will have sent emails to the associated address with instructions for setting the new password. If nothing has been done, it is clear that someone else has tried to sneak into our account, probably succeeding.
Meanwhile, our friends will have informed us of the ambiguous contents coming from our account that are invading their feed. Usually this content is photos of a sexual nature or related to intrusive advertisements.
The first thing to do is to stay calm: even if the hacker has caused us a lot of trouble, the good thing is that Instagram does not have any credit cards connected, so at least our bank details are safe. The hacked Instagram account does not pose a danger to our followers who look at the photos or visit the user profile, as long as they do not click on the links in the captions.
If the content bothers, users can report it to Instagram as spam or unfollow that account until it is restored.
Instagram account hacked: what to do
The first thing to do if your Instagram account is stolen is to go to the Instagram Help Center> Privacy and Security Center> Content Reporting - Hacked Accounts, hoping for quick action.
The Instagram team will contact you at the email address entered and will manually recover the password and account, first making sure that you are the real owner of the hacked account. Instagram, to verify your identity, will ask you to send a photo of yourself holding a sheet with the code written on it that is sent to you by email.
Once you have found sufficient feedback, Instagram will provide you with info on the latest data changes and instructions to regain possession of your account and reset your password.
Instagram: why an account is hacked
You're a mere mortal, you don't use Instagram for work, you only follow your friends, and you post mostly vacation or cat photos. Why, then, did a hacker target your Instagram account? No matter how hard you try, you just can't give yourself a plausible answer.
Unless you are a famous person, it is unlikely that someone will try to violate your privacy for personal reasons or to blackmail you. Most of the hacked Instagram accounts belong to common users. In these cases an intruder tries to take control of the account to spam and insert links in the captions that, when clicked, lead to sites that steal personal data or to red lights.
If they took possession of your Instagram profile with ease, it is probably because you use the same password for Instagram as Facebook; the two accounts are associated; you have authorized third-party applications or extensions that are unknown to you are active.
Hacked Instagram account: tips to protect yourself
To keep your Instagram account safe from any malicious people, choose a secure password, consisting of at least 6 characters in which there is a punctuation mark and a number. Possibly choose it different from those used for login to other internet services.
Change your password regularly - a piece of advice you've heard a thousand times, but never followed for fear of forgetting the new combination. Never reveal your password to someone you do not know or whom you do not trust every time you log in on Instagram from another or public device, remember to log out by unchecking the "Stay connected" item.
Two other things to do to secure the account are to activate two-factor authentication and revoke access to suspicious third-party apps (before authorizing applications outside Instagram and Facebook, make sure they are trustworthy sites and known).
To activate two-factor authentication go to your profile, press the icon of the three horizontal lines in the top right and then on Settings> Privacy and Security> Two-factor authentication. At this point choose between SMS (in case of access to your account from other unrecognized devices, the code will be sent to your phone number via message) and Authentication App, by moving the lever to the right. In the second case, Instagram will check if you have one, otherwise it will advise you which one to download.