How do you report a fake instagram account

How to report an impersonation account on Instagram

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Instagram has changed the face of social media and online marketing. It is the go-to platform for people who want to work with influencers, check reviews, and enjoy the latest scoop on products. The platform currently houses more than one billion users including several business accounts. However, despite Instagram’s tremendous work to prevent bad actors from misusing the platform, reports suggest that around 10 percent of all Instagram accounts could potentially be fake.

People open fake accounts for a variety of reasons including:

To scam others
To sell counterfeit products
To have fun
To damage the reputation of the company

Impersonification means pretending to be someone you are not. While it is common for people to use pictures of known names or celebs, these days, individuals also copy brands or pretend to be associated with companies. It takes so little for people to imitate a brand, but the impact of Instagram fake accounts and products on brands can be severe.

Whatever the reason, as a business and an individual, it is important that you find and get fake Instagram accounts blocked.

In this article, we’ll tell you how to report an impersonation account on Instagram:

How to find out if someone is impersonating me on Instagram

Impersonating someone is the same as stealing someone’s identity. People may use your name, your photos, or your brand images to pass as you to the eyes or your friends or to your customers. This is more common than you’d think.

The easiest way to find fake accounts is to search for your name or your brand’s name on Instagram. The website or Instagram app will show you all the accounts using your name.

Remember that just because someone has the same name as you doesn’t mean the person is impersonating you. Pay attention to other factors such as photos and where they claim to work.

It is common for offenders to block the real person or use variations of their name, so make sure to try different spellings and search for your account using a friend’s account.

See how you can automatically find and remove brand impersonation cases

Another way to find fake Instagram accounts is to look for hashtags. This works well for brands. However, the process can be time-consuming since branded hashtags are not only used by impersonators but also by genuine third-party sellers and consumers.

Lastly, you can use the reverse image search feature to find if someone has uploaded your photos or photos of your brand/product on Instagram. Once again, this is a time-consuming method.

If you want to save time then it is best to use an Instagram impersonation report and removal tool like Red Points that can scan through hundreds of pages and profiles and provide reliable results in no time. It removes the need to perform manual searches and allows you to identify and report fake accounts on Instagram in no time.

How to report an impersonation account on Instagram (step by step)

If it’s an individual account

Reporting an impersonation account on Instagram might sound like a complicated process but it is quite easy and straightforward. It will only take you a few minutes to report fake Instagram accounts, but before you start make sure to have all the available information including the name and ID of the fake account and your details.

Here’s how to how to report an impersonation account on Instagram:

Open the profile that’s impersonating you and click the three dots (…) you see next to the person’s account name.

Click Report User

Choose Report Account

Choose the third option – It’s Pretending to be Someone Else

Now, you will be given the option to choose who the person or account is impersonating. Available options include: ‘Me’, ‘Someone I Know’, ‘A Celebrity or Public Figure’, or ‘A Business or Organization’.

Choose the right option to proceed to the next page. This is very important because the next step will depend on what you have selected. For example, if you report on someone else’s behalf, the page may ask you to ask the person to submit a report by using a different method if they do not have their own Instagram account.
Those who do not have an Instagram account or those who are blocked by the impersonator can use this form to submit reports.

Submit the details and the company will look into it.
If you already have an established Instagram profile then the imposter’s profile may get deleted in a few days. However, in some cases, Instagram may ask you to provide further details including your name and a picture with your identity card to prove that you own the name.

The name on your ID must match the name on your profile. If it doesn’t then it is important that you edit your profile and then upload the picture.
Instagram usually replies within 24-48 hours via email.

If it’s a business page

Getting a fake profile is easy as long as you have the required documents; however, the method for reporting and removing impersonating business pages on instagram is slightly different. You will have to provide documents to prove that your intellectual right is being compromised.

The company needs applicants to submit registration certificates or other such documents that prove ownership of the name that’s being used by the imposter.

Once you submit these documents only then you will be able to get the fake account removed from Instagram. But, remember to be sure someone’s pretending to be you before you file a complaint as filing false complaints may result in your account getting blocked.

How to find out who made a fake Instagram account

This can be a little difficult because Instagram does not reveal the identity of the imposter. They will also not give you access to the other account, hence you will have to try other tricks to know who is behind your fake Instagram account.

There are two reliable ways to find out:

Communicate with the person and ask for contact details that can be used to trace them. If they’re running a fake business page, you can ask them to deliver goods that may contain business addresses and other such details.
Check if they have a URL in the bio. Open it and find the contact details on it. Sometimes, scammers direct visitors to a fake app or website to gather details or scam them. The information found on these apps or websites can help you find the real culprit.

Most people do not try to find the real person behind fake Instagram accounts and they’re satisfied when accounts get banned. However, you may have a right to take legal actions, especially if the impersonation attempt has caused you any kind of loss including financial and emotional trauma.

In order to find the person’s identity and file a legal complaint, you will need the support of an attorney. However, the process can be time-consuming and costly. Red Points on the other hand can help provide data needed to file an official complaint.

What’s next

This is all you need to know about how to report an impersonation account on Instagram. However, if you are seeing people impersonating you on social media, beware that it won’t stop there. Fake social media profiles are usually a sign of phishing, people will be redirected to fake websites or fake apps where the real scam happens. This poses real harm to your (brand) reputation and to your consumers.

Reporting one fake account is not as tedious, but as many Red Points’ customers point out, it’s usually a whack-a-mole game. We talked more about this in our post on removing fake pages on Facebook. If you still have questions then check our full guide on how to remove counterfeits on Instagram.
To save time and get control of your market presence, Red Points provides an automated solution where we keep your identity safe 24/7. To know how we do it, book a meeting with us and we will walk you through our impersonation removal platform.

How to take down an Instagram account

Instagram has grown from a niche photo-sharing platform into one of the most popular social media platforms, with over 2 billion monthly active users in 2021.

With the popularity of the platform, many businesses are now looking at Instagram as their primary online marketing channel: it’s the place where they work with influencers to promote their product, get user-generated reviews, and more.

Yet, it’s quite obvious that the fact that there are many businesses being active on Instagram also invites many bad actors looking to take advantage of the situation.

While Instagram has been very active in combating cybercriminals and scammers on the platform, unfortunately, it’s still not good enough. There are still many fake accounts impersonating famous people and well-known brands, and bad actors can then use these fake accounts to:

Selling fake products, claiming to be a legitimate brand offering ‘special discount. ’
Scam others, for example, by sending a link to phishing scams
Post derogatory content to damage the reputation of the company the account is impersonating.

And more.

So, if you are a legitimate brand and your brand identity is assumed by a fake account, what can you do about it?

In this guide, we will explore your options, especially how to take down these fake Instagram accounts via reporting.

Let us begin.

The legality of fake Instagram accounts: How Instagram handles trademarks

Is creating a fake Instagram account impersonating another person or organization legal? The short answer is no, it’s illegal, and if you are a registered trademark owner, Instagram is obligated to follow the U.S. federal trademark laws and potentially other relevant trademark laws in your location.

This simply means trademark infringement is strictly prohibited on Instagram, so if you found your brand being impersonated by others (so technically, they have stolen your trademark), you have the right to report this account, and Instagram is obligated to take action.

Instagram also adheres to the common law trademark rights, so it can ban accounts that perform infringements on unregistered trademarks, potentially including individual identity.

So, even if you haven’t or can’t register your trademark yet (i.e., you can’t register an individual name unless you are already famous), you can still take action against these fake accounts impersonating your identity.

Due to the visual nature of Instagram, trademark infringements can happen in a wide variety of different ways: logos, brand names, product design, and so on.

Here are some examples of acts on Instagram that may be considered legal trademark infringement:

Fake accounts using your brand logo and brand name in their Instagram post or Instagram ads.
The usage of your slogan in a video ad
Facebook profiles using your name, logo, and slogan in their design

3 ways to spot a fake Instagram account

According to the most recent studies there are around 2 billion active Instagram accounts. It is no surprise then that it is a difficult task to find one or two accounts who may be using your logo, name, or brand image. Nevertheless, there are a few methods you can use to spot fake Instagram accounts:

1. Search on Instagram

The first (and the easiest) thing to do is search for your name or brand’s name on Instagram. Try searching for phrase variations, typos (i.e., Gogle instead of Google), and so on. Instagram will then show the search result listing all the accounts using your brand name.

Try reviewing these accounts one by one. Remember an account with a name that is similar or the same as your brand name has not necessarily been created with malicious intent to impersonate you. You can also evaluate other factors, like the content they are posting (i.e., if they are copying your feeds, you can bet it’s a blatant impersonation), where they claim they are located, interactions with others, and so on.

Additionally, keep in mind that accounts created with malicious intent tend to block the legitimate brand. Therefore you may need to try using another account (i.e., your personal account) to perform the search.

2. Search via hashtags

Leverage Instagram’s search algorithm. Try using hashtags in your search to find fake Instagram accounts. This is especially effective when the fake account is using the account to sell products because, typically, they’ll use product-specific hashtags.

However, you’ll need to be creative and meticulous when using this approach since, in practice, branded/product-specific hashtags are also used by legitimate consumers, resellers, and vendors. This approach can be very effective when done right but it is also bound to be very time-consuming and dull.

3. Reverse image search

Perform a reverse image search (i.e., via Google Images) to check whether there are accounts that posted your photos or photos of your product/logo on Instagram. As with searching via hashtags, this process can also be time-consuming.

How to take down an Instagram account manually: Step-by-Step

1. By using your desktop/web app

Step 1: Open your computer browser and then type https://help.instagram.com/contact/636276399721841 on the address bar.

Step 2: you’ll be given several options to describe your situation. Since you are reporting a fake account, you can choose the option “Someone created an account pretending to be someone I represent).

Step 3: fill out your information on the given form. Even if you are reporting an account abuse for your sild, fill out the form with your own name and personal details.

Step 4: You’ll need to specify your relationship to the person being impersonated. If you are reporting your own Instagram account, then you can click on “The Instagram username of the person being impersonated.” Alternatively, you can choose other options like “Authorized representative” depending on your business’s type and other factors.

Step 5: You’ll need to submit information about the fake account. In the “The full name listed on the account that you’re reporting” field, type the name used as the profile’s name in its bio and not the username. Input the username in the next field.

Step 6: You’ll need to take a photo of yourself holding up an accepted ID. You can use any form of government ID here: passport, visa, driver’s license, and even birth certificate, among others. If you don’t have a government ID, you can hold up two IDs like a school ID card and a bank statement. Check the full list of accepted ID forms here. Make sure that both your face and the ID are visible in the photo. Once you’re done, click “Choose Files” and upload the photo.

Step 7: Click Send and submit your report.

Voila, you’ve successfully submitted your complaint form. Instagram will review your submission and may contact you if they require more information. Instagram usually replies within 24 to 48 hours via email and will delete the fake account if your request if approved.

2. By using a mobile app

Note: it’s typically more effective to submit the form via the web/desktop app, and you can’t provide any proof via the mobile app. However, the process is easier and faster when using a mobile app.

Step 1: Go to the fake profile/account that impersonates you or your brand.

Step 2: Tap the three dots at the top-right and choose “Report,” you’ll be provided with several options. Click on “Report Account.”

Step 3: On the next set of options, tap “It’s pretending to be someone else”.

Step 4: Choose who the account is impersonating. You can select “a business or organization” if the account is currently impersonating your brand.

Step 5: Tap “Submit Report”

As you can see, you won’t be able to provide any proof, and you can’t specify who the account is impersonating when you are reporting from the mobile app, but the process is much easier. You can, however, use this option to submit a quick report, and you may follow up with another report from your desktop/web app later.

However, a mobile report can still be effective, and Instagram may disable the fake account if they are able to gather enough findings.

Reporting impersonation of a business page

If your brand owns a legitimate Instagram Business page, then reporting the fake profile and getting it taken down is much easier. You can use the Instagram trademark infringement form to report the fake account using your trademarks.

You’ll need to provide proof of ownership and prepare the required documents to prove that your registered trademarks have been infringed. Having screenshots and other proof showing the account infringing your trademarks may also help.

Typically you’ll be required to submit a copy of your registration certificate that is able to prove ownership of the business/brand name that’s being used by the bad actor on the fake account.

Once you’ve submitted this proof of ownership and other relevant proof, Instagram will review the report to determine whether or not a trademark infringement has occurred. This report will serve as your official DMCA takedown request, and once it’s approved, Instagram will ensure the account is taken down, and all content is removed.

What if you don’t hear back?

If you submit the Instagram trademark infringement form and don’t hear any response after 48 hours, don’t panic. First things first, try resubmitting the form. There’s always the possibility of technical errors, and so your form is not received. If there’s any change to the situation, you may also want to update the information first before resubmitting the form.

If the second form is ignored again, then you can try emailing Instagram’s support team. There may be underlying circumstances causing this delay, for example, if the support team requires more time to evaluate whether the infringement actually occurred. The support team may also ask for further information and proof before they can approve the report.

Finding out the culprit

Can you find out who made the fake account and take the necessary action?

Unfortunately, this can be quite challenging to do since Instagram will not reveal the identity of the bad actor for privacy purposes. Instagram also will not give you access to the fake account even after it’s taken down.

So, you’ll need to be proactive and take things on your own. Here are some tips you can use to find the culprit behind the fake account:

Try reaching out to the contact information provided on the Instagram bio. Communicate with them and ask for contact information that can be used to trace them. For example, if they are selling counterfeit products, you may ask them to deliver the goods that may contain their address.
If they have any URL in the bio, open the website or app, and trace the contact details. The contact information listed on the website may be able to help you find the culprit.

If the impersonation attempt has caused you any kind of financial loss or otherwise, it might be worth it to pursue the real culprit and take legal action. Red Points can help provide the data needed to file an official complaint in the event of legal disputes.

How to report hundred of fake Instagram accounts once and for all (with Red Points)

While Instagram has its own manual reporting system, going through hundreds of Instagram accounts looking for possible impersonators is not a practical use of time for busy executives. This is where Red Points can help.

Red Points is a Revenue Recovery platform that can accomplish this tiresome task with ease through smart, automated software. Red Points’ tools and teams help to ensure that businesses can recover revenue lost to scammers and impersonators on social media sites like Instagram. Here’s how we do it:

Monitoring and Detecting

By conducting 24/7 bot-powered searches on Instagram, Red Points locates scammers who might be infringing your intellectual property with fake Instagram accounts and content.

This monitoring and detecting system is supported by image recognition, machine learning and keyword searches based on your previously submitted intellectual property registrations (like trademark, copyright, patent, etc). With these methods Red Points’ can then isolate, discard or validate fake Instagram accounts.

Validation and prioritization

Instagram is among many of the social media sites targeted by scammers. It’s impractical and inefficient to manually check thousands of Instagram accounts to detect bad actors. Instead Red Points’ automated tools allow you to set prioritization rules to validate high risk infringements first, tackling the most damaging and persistent fake Instagram accounts.

Enforcing

As soon as these fake accounts start appearing on Instagram, Red Points’ automated system will kick into action. Red Points’ Impersonation Protection Software reviews suspicious accounts and applies automatic takedowns based on your own pre-established rules, like price range, stock, platform, etc.

You can also manually assess infringements that fall outside the scope of your rules. This in turn will teach Red Points’ software via machine learning how to respond to similar cases in the future.

Economic impact

Following enforcement, Red Points allows users to understand and assess the overall economic impact of reporting bogus Instagram accounts. You can view the amount of revenue you have recovered and get specific information such as amount of incidents per asset. Ultimately, this will help you understand the true economic value of pursuing, reporting and taking down fake Instagram accounts.

Custom reports

Lastly, you’ll be able access custom reports packed full of relevant data related to the scammers and the incidents, and request specific information that goes from number of enforcements done by infringement type to average days from notification to takedown.

What’s next

With the online dominance of social media platforms like Instagram and the worrying growth of cybercrimes, protecting your brand identity has to be a priority. If you use Instagram to grow your business and sell your products, it is vital to know how to spot a fake account, how to close an Instagram account by reporting and how to take down an Instagram account by alternative means. At Red Points, we offer sophisticated Brand Protection Software to ensure that you can find, track and report Instagram accounts that are stealing your IP. If you want to protect brand identity on social media and deal with trademark infringement through an automated solution, talk to one of our experts now to see how it works for you.

How to identify a fake Instagram account and how to block it

Many girls check their boyfriends for allegiance using fake Instagram profiles that are difficult to distinguish from real accounts. What to look for in order to identify a fake page, and how to protect yourself from fakes, the author of Medialeaks figured out.

How to distinguish a fake account from a real one

To check the relationship with a young man, many girls go to the trick - they create or buy fake social media accounts and try to start a conversation with boyfriends on behalf of a pretty stranger. It is not easy to make a fake realistic, it is only more difficult to distinguish a well-designed fake. nine0003

Tiktoker nexllery shared with her followers the basic rules for maintaining a fake Instagram account, based on which a fake profile can be calculated. The author of the tutorial advised to fill the page with photos of girls whose appearance does not have catchy details - for example, hair dyed in bright colors.

Do not say that you are from the same city (suddenly offer to meet), - advises the user of tiktok.

Also, the tiktoker recommended not to subscribe to her real account and to the profiles of her friends, as this could link the fake with the owner. nine0003

Fake accounts often use several pictures where the face is visible, while the rest hide it in the shade, cover it with hair or post a photo from the back. The most cunning owners of fake profiles take frames from network users who publish pictures specifically for fake pages.

Usually, the set of photos for fakes includes pictures typical for Instagram of many girls. Selfies, shots from the fitting room, a picture with a large soft toy and a photo in the mirror. An example of such a kit can be seen in the account of the tiktoker __s.berry.s__.

Photo from the collection __s.berry.s__

Tiktoker victoriamilonkova shared a life hack that will help you recognize a fake account with real footage. The author of the video suggested using the search by photo. According to her, it is necessary to check the pictures through Yandex, as it gives more results about Russian-language resources.

Sometimes girls use fakes not to check boyfriends, but to arouse jealousy in former or future boyfriends. Tiktokersha mona_user created a fake guy account on instagram so that users of the social network could tag him in stories.

Girls, specially created a fake account for you. You will say that this is your boyfriend, I will respond to your stories, make fake correspondence. Photos are updated every day, as well as stories.

It is easier to figure out a fake young man - due to the fact that the guys do not share their photos to create fakes, the authors have to take frames from the Web, in which the face is most often not visible. Another "red flag" is a large number of girls in the readers and a small number of subscriptions. nine0003

Signs of a fake account:

many photos where the face is not visible;
few subscribers;
image without bright details;
subscription to your girlfriend or her friends;
the interlocutor's refusal to tell where she lives;
coincidence of photos in the accounts of different girls when searching through Yandex. Pictures.

How to protect yourself from fakes

Tiktoker _m_a_r_i_k_eslicho told how to block fake accounts on Instagram that belong to one person at a time. nine0003

When any account is blocked, all accounts linked to the same number or e-mail are automatically blocked. Girls, we urgently delete the left accounts, otherwise we will burn in any way.

First of all, you need to go to the profile you are going to block and click on the three dots in the upper right corner of the screen.

How to ban a person on Instagram

A menu will appear below, in which you should select "Block" and click the "*nickname* and new accounts of this user" button. nine0003 How to ban a person on Instagram

Such a ban system will help close your profile from other fake accounts of the same person, no matter when they were created - before or after blocking.

This function will also let you know if the user had other profiles that you did not know about. If yes, then in the "Banned Accounts" section, the icon of the banned person will have a gray "shadow".

Several blocked accounts

You may not see the nickname of the additional profile, but you can be sure that the owner of the fakes will not disturb you, since Instagram will automatically block new accounts of this person for you. However, if the owner of a fake account is your girlfriend, then it will probably not be possible to avoid a showdown. nine0003

Many netizens criticize the idea of checking a guy's fidelity through a fake social media account. This is probably why they tell you how to detect a fake and how to block it.

Previously, Medialeaks talked about three ways to check if you got an Instagram shadowban.

In another article by Medialeaks, you can find out how the fake story of Dasha Koreika confused the Internet users. Many believed that the blogger regrets the change of sex. nine0003

How to spot a fake social media account?

2022-11-27

In social networks, quite often you can find spam messages: “Do you want to earn a lot of money today?”, “Do you want to lose weight without getting up from the couch?” and many other appeals that promise people everything at once.

Usually such mailing is done from fake accounts. Such "users" must be identified and removed from them in time, since an attempt to communicate with them can lead to the loss of personal time, as well as really important information. This article will talk about how you can detect a fake account on such popular social networks as Facebook, VKontakte, Odnoklassniki and Instagram. nine0003

How to spot a fake Facebook account?
How to detect a fake VKontakte account?
How to detect a fake account in the Odnoklassniki social network?
How to spot a fake Instagram account?

There are no automated ways to find fake accounts on the Facebook social network, so you will have to manually identify fake users. The first step is to check the main photo posted on the user page. To do this, just do the following:

Go to the page of the verified user.
Right-click on a person's photo and select "Find this image in Yandex" from the context menu.
See the results that the search engine will provide.

As you can see in the example above, we have a well-known resident of the Comedy Club project, and it is unlikely that he would write personal messages to anyone advertising goods or offering to buy a unique simulator that increases muscle mass in a matter of days. Therefore, if someone writes from such an account, then there is a huge probability that this is done by a fake user. nine0003

You should also be suspicious of all Facebook profiles with the main photos of a model appearance and those accounts that were created very recently (the Timeline application will help you find out the date of registration of your Facebook account).

In the VKontakte social network, determining the age of a user's page is also an indirect way to determine whether it is fake or not. This is done by identifying a unique user ID.

You can find a unique identifier (ID) by going to the user's page and looking at the address bar of the browser. Based on this information, you can determine the approximate date the account was created. For example, if the user ID has a value in the region of 100000000, this indicates that he opened an account in 2020. In the example above, the user ID is 300905727, indicating that the page was created fairly recently.

Next, you need to check the user's activity on his own VKontakte page. A real user in the album will always have a couple of personal photos added at different times. In addition, a real person reposts a wide variety of entries on different days, adds audio recordings and videos. The number of friends a real VKontakte user has varies from 20 to 500 people, but there are exceptions. If the number of friends of a suspicious user goes into the thousands, then most likely they are all cheated. nine0003

The Odnoklassniki social network is considered to be a platform for adults of sufficient age (those over 30), so fake accounts are especially common here. Usually they are created by people who want to try on someone else's image, chat with their friends under an assumed name, advertise something without obviously damaging their own reputation.

In principle, checking an account in the Odnoklassniki social network for authenticity is carried out in much the same way as in other social networks: you need to check the presence of the main photo of the account on the Internet, look at the date of registration in the system, as well as the quality of filling in the user profile. nine0003

If a copy of the personal page of a real person was found on the Odnoklassniki social network, you can file a complaint against the author of the "fake". To do this, you will need to go to his profile, select the “Other actions” item in the menu and click on the “Complain” button, while indicating registration under a false name and surname as the reason for filing a complaint.

To identify a fake Instagram page, follow the steps below:

Check user photos: fake accounts often post photos of beautiful people in sexy or simply attractive poses, in order to maximize the attention of other users (photos in the family circle fake accounts usually don't). nine0052
View photo upload dates - fake users post all their photos on the same day, and often even the same minute.
The feed of fake accounts is spammed with various posts that do not carry any significant semantic load.
Fake rarely responds to comments, as well as to the description of published photos.

A special case is fake accounts maintained by specially trained programs (bots). They are scrupulous about filling in all the data and are always active on the page entrusted to them. It is possible to calculate such fakes only when communicating in personal correspondence. nine0003

Summing up, it can be said that it is quite easy to identify fake accounts in social networks, but for this you need to follow at least elementary precautionary rules. You should never enter into an active dialogue with unfamiliar users, and even more so, accept any files from them or follow the links provided by them. And if you find a fake account, you must immediately report it to the administration of the social network through the form for sending a complaint or feedback.