What is Instagram phishing? Everything you need to know

Before diving in, let us first know a bit about Instagram. In these days of the least physical interaction, social sites like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp play an important role in connecting everyone with their loved ones. Instagram is one of the trendiest social media applications that everyone uses and has over a billion users around the world. 

Lets first have a look at the scope of Instagram and how the application has been influencing so many people around the world

Instagram has been amazing in this field. Instagram keeps everyone connected with its stories, posts, and DM option as well. You can see what is happening in the other corner of the globe just by some clicks. Many news stories are now first released and on Instagram and then on news channels.

Getting started on Instagram is as straightforward as ABC.  Just install the application or go to the website and click ‘Sign-Up’. This will take you to create a new account panel. Furthermore, you can add your profile picture, your name, contact info and you can link your website if you have one to promote your businesses as well. you can also protect your website or account by using a security checker website. 

In this era of digitalization, presence on such social interaction websites is in reality main. It provides you more disclosure of what is phenomenal and trending in the world right now. If you are a gritty person, you are not on the right path if you are not on any site like this. It provides loads and heaps of information which is obligatory for you to be aware of the world better. To sum up the theme, it is vital for all and sundry to be on social websites.

Instagram is owned by the owners of Facebook, WhatsApp, and other such applications. The CEO of these websites at the present time is none other than Mark Zuckerburg. Research indicates that almost 1 Billion people are using Instagram in the present day. Half of them are online at a time. How catastrophic would it be that Instagram stops working at once? Many people are having their business done on Instagram. The information was fetched from 

Moving on, let’s have a look at some of the Phishing Attacks 

Phishing is a cybercrime in which the assaulter tries to get admission to any system by the use of email, contact number, or any other on-line means by conveying a message. That message or text is likely to have a virus in it that might assault your computer after the planner has planted it.

The phishing attack is a counterfeit stab to steal any insightful data like username, password, bank account details, or contact information. This is all done to disturb you. Phishing is a serious crime; however, the governments never took it seriously before. With more users increasing at a rapid rate, this has now become a serious cause of concern as it can put the privacy of millions of users at stake.

Now that cybercrime departments have evaluated themselves a lot, every cybercrime is being taken seriously. As soon as any paranormal activity is reported, cybercrime departments get on to it and find the criminal involved.

Diving into the details, let’s have a look at what exactly is Instagram Phishing so that you can keep your data safe from any sort of cybercrime and cyberattacks. It is really of great importance to keep yourself safe from all the hassle. 

Nine years back, a year after the creation of Instagram, the first Instagram phishing case was reported. It was the account of a teacher that was breached by her students. After they learned that there has been some paranormal activity, they contacted both parties and informed them about the scenario.

Those students were excluded from high school. At that time, there wasn’t much knowledge about cybercrimes. This phishing attack was only considered a rage from students.

Instagram phishing is a process when an assaulter tries to get access to your Instagram account by sending you a suspicious message or link that tends to ask you about your personal information. That information might be used to plan a cyber attack on your computer. 

If any message or link appears to you in your DM, never open or use it. It is always contaminated with malware that turns out to damage your computer but you can protect your account by site malware scan.

The invaders are clever enough to quote that if you did not follow these instructions, your account might be banned or deleted from Instagram permanently. Learning this, we get triggered easily and proceed to what the message says.

Remember, according to cyber law, no social networking site is allowed to delete your account permanently from its hub without any valid cause. Not following some degraded instructions, is surely NOT VALID.  

Now let’s have a look at how it works.

It works simply by sending you a message or a link. If you open the message or link, your account will be phished shortly. After it is done, it is very difficult to recover your account. Nevertheless, it is not impossible. After some clicks, you might recover your account back to normal. Phishing attacks are easy to handle, but they cause inconvenience 

The question that might arise now is how can a user know that they have become a victim of an illegal phishing attack? Let’s analyze some of the possible symptoms that can help you know and stay aware to take the relevant measures.

 If you feel the following signs, become more cautious and stay vigilant in order to figure out that your account has been phished.

•     Suspicious activities on your account 
•     Your account starts modifying suddenly
•     Your followers start increasing or decreasing intensively.

In addition to that, rarely would someone know that their account has been phished if they do not use their account on a regular basis. If you are a regular user of your Instagram account, you would know as soon as you have been phished.

A phished account might look like this

Let’s now consider the possible steps you can take in order to recover your account after it has been phished, and have a look at the possible solutions. 

Long story short, somehow your account has been phished and now you are striving to recover it back to normal. It is not that difficult, it is only time-consuming. Simply, go to Recover Password and insert your valid information. This will let Instagram know that it was you who got phished recently in their database. 

They will urgently let you in your account and if you have lost some data, they might help you to recover it so use malware scanning to avoid such viruses. The algorithm of Instagram is really very impenetrable. In the means of security, Instagram really has revoluted a lot. Only a few users are not satisfied with the services they offer. Of course, hatred comes along with love.

Lastly, to maintain the security and integrity of your data online, let’s evaluate the possibilities that you can be mindful of to be secure from Instagram Phishing 

Some of the premises that will help you to secure your account from phishing are described next.

•     First, learn how to handle social media accounts and know how to use them.
•     Whenever you authorize another application, make sure to read their permission status. Be sure of what you are allowing them to take from you. However, if there is something that you doubt, let it be confirmed by the company itself. If it really feels suspicious, do not use that application again.
•     Always set the 2-step authentication ON. It will prevent the invader from accessing your account even if he knows your password.
•     Prohibit the use of bots that promise to increase your followers or add likes or comments to your posts automatically. There is no such thing in the algorithm of Instagram. This is only a way to earn black money and scam.

Conclusion

So it seems that we have got enough information about Instagram phishing and phishing attacks. Now you can use Instagram the right way. It is highly recommended that you stay aware of all the possible threats you can face on social media applications, to save yourself from facing the music and crazy consequences, otherwise. 

Stay aware, stay safe and Happy posting!