As social media is evolving day by day, security threats have also been becoming a major issue in our lives. Social media platforms not only connect us with our friends and family members but also exceptionally empower influencers and content creators to increase their brand reach by targeting a wider audience.
Although our social media users can express whatever they are freely still, there are some moles who create fake accounts. But now, every platform has raised its security standards to protect its users’ privacy, so if you ever suspect someone’s profile, whether it is real or fake, you can easily find out who is using that profile. In this blog, we are going to reveal the secrets of how to identify someone’s fake Instagram account.
1. Understand the Reasons for Investigating
Before stepping on some of the secret yet effective ways to identify who is using the Instagram profile you are suspecting, it’s necessary to understand why there is a need to do so. Nowadays hackers aren’t some moles that create Instagram fake accounts due to a variety of reasons.
- Harassment and bullying: Sometimes, fake accounts serve to be a great way to harass or threaten someone.
- Impersonation: Sometimes, the hackers use these fake accounts to pretend to be you and deceive your loved ones.
- Scamming: You will be shocked to know fake accounts are one of the most prevailing reasons for fraudulent activities. These moles scam people and threaten them with their personal information to grab more money.
- Spreading false information: People want to spread rumors about influencers, content creators, or other famous personalities over platforms, and for this purpose, they create fake accounts to manipulate someone’s identity.
If you know why and how the person you suspect created a fake account and exploited social media users over any social or public platform, you can easily point them out and threaten them about the legal consequences they might face.
2. Gather Initial Information
If you want to take out someone’s fake account it’s necessary to get as much information as possible. This information will help you a lot while investigating that profile. If you want to know what kind of information you must have to identify a fake account, you must have the following:
- Username: Usernames are always one of the key aspects that tell people about that person. The profile you are suspecting, might use a number of variations to deceive you.
- Profile Picture: If there is a profile picture on the Instagram account, you can search it over Google through Google images. This way, you can easily cross-check how many users are currently using that specific profile picture.
- Bio Information: Cross check what kind of information that person had added to their account, like locations, and whether they have linked their profile to other social accounts or not.
- Followers and Following: Remember another thing you must never ignore is how many followers they have and what accounts are following them. This way, you can easily get to know how many people in your connections are following or being followed by that specific account.
3. Check Other Social Media Platforms
Over different social media platforms, sometimes people use the same user’s name. If you suspect someone over Instagram, try searching for their username on other platforms like LinkedIn, X or even Facebook. If you find the same person you are looking for on Instagram over other platforms, it might reveal many things about their identity.
4. Use Reverse Image Search
Remember when earlier we mentioned the profile pictures of these fake accounts? There are a lot of tools like Google Images and TinEye that can help you in searching these images. For this, you simply have to upload that image over the tool and start looking for the same image or the ones similar to what you provided. If social media profiles have the same image, you can find out more about that person’s identity.
5. Analyze the Account’s Activity
It’s time to cross-check the activity you are suspecting. See when the specific account was created. At what time do they usually post on their profile? What kind of people have interacted with that profile recently? Accounts with some suspicious activities usually create these fake identities to harass or scam other people. By matching the similarities in their posting and daily routines, you can get some information about them.
6. Engage with the Account
Another thing you can do to point out these fake identity accounts over Instagram is to look for clues about that person on other platforms. If you are switching to this way, remember that you always have to be very careful. Do not ever try to manipulate the situation for any future threats. Casually get in touch with them and ask the questions which will help you in revealing more things about them.
7. Report the Account to Instagram
If the profile you suspect is harassing or threatening other social media users over the platform, you can easily report that specific profile in Instagram’s algorithm. Just visit the Instagram community guidelines and see whether that person is violating the guidelines or not. If you report the account, Instagram will start their investigation and if found guilty, they will restrict that account. Although Instagram never reveals the identity behind that profile, they still disable that account. For reporting an account, you have to call a:
- Visit that specific profile you suspect of a fake identity.
- At the top right corner, you can see three dots. Click it.
- Select the option “Report Now”.
- Simply, now you have to follow the prompts to safely report this account.
8. Seek Legal Assistance
For instance, if the profile you suspect is involved in some harassment or even threatening other users, you can even take legal action against that profile. There are lawyers who will surely help you out and track the person who is using the fake account. Instagram even helps in revealing the IP address of that specific profile if the issue gets down messy.
9. Use Online Investigation Services
Apart from legal action, there are thousands of online service providers who help in tracking down people using fake accounts for suspicious activities over social media platforms. From public records to analyzing their overall social media activity, and everything in between these service providers use marvelously crime handling techniques to reveal the identity behind that account. Some of these services are free, while others ask for payment. While choosing the best option out there, it’s necessary to thoroughly cross-check whether you are using a legitimate provider or not to avoid any further scams.
10. Consider the Privacy and Ethical Implications
Although, it’s necessary to see who is behind that suspected account. But remember, you must make sure to be within your limits and respect the ethical implications during your account investigation. By following the right strategy, you can avoid any consequences in the future.
11. Prevent Future Issues
Once you have revealed the identity behind that fake account, it’s time to now strengthen your social media privacy and security by using two-factor authentication methods or even changing your passwords to double up your security. Make sure to educate your surrounding social media users about these fake accounts to avoid any suspicious activities in the future.
Conclusion
Unmasking the identity behind a fake account over Instagram can be a risk-taking yet challenging task. But by following the right strategy and techniques to reveal the identity behind a fake account, you can identify that person.
Remember, whatever method you choose to reveal the identity behind that fake account, it’s necessary to keep your privacy and security as your top priority. So make sure to protect yourself as well as your social presence while getting involved in any investigational activities out there!
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Digital Marketer with experience in the research,planning development and marketing of automation solutions for Social Networks.Blog Contributor of ProflUp
