Credit: http://www.symantec.com/connect/blogs/instagram-accounts-hacked-altered-promote-adult-dating-spam
Have you checked your Instagram account lately? In case you haven’t, then this piece of information might interest you. Some Instagram users have had their accounts hacked, with hackers flooding them with pornographic pictures and adult dating spam.
Victims have had their account passwords changed, while links to adult dating sites that pay hackers when a user signs up have become a common thing, reports the Daily Mail .
The first thing you want to do when you log in to your Instagram account is check if you will notice any suspicious activity. If you notice anything strange in your account, then there is a possibility that your account may have been breached.
Security experts found these victimized accounts have a different biography, image and name than the original page, and sexual photos were uploaded to instruct others to visit the link of a profile outside the social network.
In May , more than 2,500 Twitter accounts were compromised, with hackers flooding users with links to websites that specializes in adult dating and porn. Profile photo, biography, and full name of users were also affected.
Credit: http://www.symantec.com/connect/blogs/instagram-accounts-hacked-altered-promote-adult-dating-spam
According to Symantec , the security company that exposed the hack, breached accounts are being used to promote adult content:
“Over the last few months, we have observed Instagram accounts being hacked and used to promote adult dating spam.”
“Our findings follow a previous report on Twitter accounts being hacked to post links to adult dating and sex personals, which bears some similarities to this new campaign.”
“However, we have not established a direct link between them.”
Symantec is yet to identify or mention the individual or group behind the attack on users’ accounts. However, a statement on the company’s blog said the link redirects to intermediate site controlled by scammers.
“This site contains a survey suggesting that a woman has nude photos to share and that the user will be directed to a site that offers “quick sex” rather than dating. Interestingly, this page only appears on mobile browsers. If the user tries to visit the URLs on a desktop computer or laptop, they are sent to a random Facebook user’s profile,” a statement on Symantec blog explained.
Credit: http://www.symantec.com/connect/blogs/instagram-accounts-hacked-altered-promote-adult-dating-spam
How users’ Instagram accounts are being hackedThe usual suspects of course, are use of weaker passwords and password reuse. This is becoming a regular feature, not just in the case of Instagram, but in several other social media and email hacks that have taken place recently. Users are guilty of either using weak password or reusing one password over different accounts on the web.
Securing your Instagram accountIf using weaker password and reusing similar password over multiple websites are usually suspected as the easiest way to hack an account by hackers, it is only logical that a user needs to be more creative. Be more creative when choosing a password, and avoid reusing one password over multiple websites.
Finally, you can use Instagram’s two-factor authentication, which could prevent hackers from taking over your account. Check if you are able to use this feature on your smartphone, and start using it today.
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