What Is a Spam Account on Instagram?

In a constantly shifting digital environment, the rise of fake social media accounts has drawn increased media attention.

In 2023, Facebook alone took down more than 2.6 billion spam accounts. Being one of the largest networking sites in the world, Instagram isn’t immune to this issue, either. But the use of fake accounts, or finstas, on this platform is somewhat different from other social media, so much so that certain spam accounts on Instagram are even allowed.

In this article, we take a deep dive into fake Instagram accounts, discussing what they are, their drawbacks, and how you can detect them.

What Does a Spam Account on Instagram Mean?

An Instagram account set up under a fake identity is often called a fake or spam account.

For instance, a celebrity might consider it important to keep their public and private selves separated, especially on the internet. To avoid prying public eyes, they may maintain a public account for their fans and a different private account to interact with close friends and family.

Even regular people can create a secondary account for various reasons.

Youngsters using finstas to engage with their closest friends in private is a good example. A distinctive trend on Instagram now, this practice allows teens and young adults to be their true selves and socialize within a safe space without any fear of being judged in public. In a way, finstas have provided them with an escape from peer and social pressures.

Fake accounts can be useful for work purposes, too. Influencers often have multiple accounts focused on different niches. Entrepreneurs may also set up business accounts separate from their personal ones.

The bottom line is, fake accounts on Instagram could offer specific benefits for their owners, with zero negative impact on other users. But this doesn’t mean you should overlook their darker side.

The Problem With Finstas

Fake or spam Instagram accounts have become a concern for many platform users due to the notable risks some of them pose.

At an individual level, people can leverage finstas to spread misinformation, as seen recently with the U.S. presidential campaigns. Some could hide behind fake accounts to troll or harass individuals, too.

Things can get really out of hand when spam accounts are used at a mass scale.

For instance, bad actors often deploy bots to populate thousands of shady accounts on Instagram. These may appear as profiles of regular platform users, while sometimes they could impersonate well-known people to win trust.

Using them, scammers can commit financial fraud or launch phishing attacks to access private information.

Creating fake engagement with the help of hoax accounts is also common. This is when finstas are used to share promotional posts, leave fake likes, comments, and reviews, and bot-click Instagram ads.

Spam bots can make it increasingly difficult to tell apart genuine engagement and real followers from fake ones. As a result, marketing teams could end up making decisions based on distorted engagement metrics while wasting money on fake ad clicks and followers. Such practices could mislead regular users as well.

Take, for instance, mega-influencers — 58.5% of them reportedly use fake followers to inflate engagement. So, the mega personalities you religiously follow on Instagram might not be so popular after all.

Spam is another obvious hassle. A barrage of irrelevant messages about shady adult services and the like can naturally put a damper on the user experience.

As for youngsters seeking privacy through finstas, there’s little assurance social media platforms can offer with regard to anonymity.

Remember, it’s easy to copy and share digital content: A friend in your social network could take a screenshot of what you post or share their screen with someone else. In other words, a private finsta can’t promise absolute privacy, and, therefore, you may want to think twice before sharing sensitive material. 

How Can You Identify an Instagram Spam Account?

Is someone you know keeping their main account hidden using a finsta? Are you getting DMs from an Instagram imposter? Is your favorite influencer tricking you with bloated engagement? Do you suspect your marketing agency is misleading you with fake followers?

If you answer yes, then it’s important for you to learn how to identify spam Instagram profiles. Fortunately, certain characteristics could easily give them away.

For instance, many such accounts will have a short account history. They’ll also feature strange usernames, often containing a set of random letters, numbers, and special characters.

Vague bios is another sign to watch. A genuine user would make an effort to describe themselves and their interests, whereas a fake one won’t.

Many spam accounts also feature blurred or overly edited profile photos to conceal the real identity of those behind them.

What about their Instagram activities? Bot-driven accounts wouldn’t generally post content or interact with their audience. Most of them won’t even have many followers in the first place. If they do, they would typically consist of other spam accounts managed by bots.

However, in most instances, they could be following thousands of others. This is especially common among profiles used to populate marketing, spam, and scam messages and boost followers of business and influencer accounts.

And when they communicate with you, they’ll usually leave generic or irrelevant comments or send direct messages that seem straight out of a script.

When you notice any strange activities, always check the user profile for telltale signs of a spam account. If you want to investigate further and confirm your suspicions, Nuwber is one of the effective tools to uncover more about an individual.

To Summarize

Concealing a person’s identity, whether on Instagram or elsewhere, can seem pretty sketchy at first glance.

However, finstas aren’t always used for deceitful purposes. Celebrities may, for example, keep their main accounts hidden to ensure privacy and use a secondary profile to interact with their fans.

At the same time, there are various instances when a spam account could deliberately mislead you or threaten your safety.

Spreading misinformation, harassing users with spam messages, cyberbullying, and luring in victims for scams are some of the prevalent issues finstas have given rise to.  

FAQ

What does it mean when someone has a spam account?

Bad actors could use spam accounts to troll, stalk, scam, or cause some other form of harm to those around them. 

However, maintaining one or more accounts in addition to a person’s real Instagram account doesn’t always indicate sinister motives.

Youngsters, for example, could set up a finsta to avoid being scrutinized by parents and other adults. It could create a safe space for them to comment and post without feeling judged. A celebrity or influencer may also keep a second account for personal interactions with friends and family.

Is it legal to have more than one account on Instagram?

Unlike most other social media sites, Instagram lets users set up several accounts on its platform, provided there are legitimate reasons.

This policy has been particularly beneficial for influencers and businesses who prefer to maintain multiple accounts — with one for each area of interest or niche — to better engage with their audiences.

According to the platform’s terms of service, you can connect up to five accounts for each email address and switch between them with ease. However, keep in mind that there are rules and guidelines to ensure safe and ethical Instagram use. These are in place for the safety of platform users.

What kind of threats can Instagram spam bots pose?

Most spam bots will flood you with annoying promotional messages and comments. But, sometimes, their activities can be far more menacing.

For example, they could carry out fake marketing programs, lure you in for financial fraud, or even steal your identity using phishing tactics. In certain cases, bots are deployed for targeted defamatory campaigns and the spreading of disinformation.

For businesses using Instagram for marketing purposes, the impact of getting caught with bot-run accounts can be pretty costly. Such fake accounts could not only distort campaign outcomes but also waste marketing dollars.

How can I guard against Instagram spam?

Taking safety precautions is necessary when interacting on Instagram, as with any other social media.

But what measures can you take? Avoid sharing personal information that could compromise your privacy and safety. Ignoring unsolicited messages, keeping accounts private, and checking profiles of unknown individuals for suspicious activity is essential, too.

In addition, there are several platform features you can use to strengthen safety. For example, with the Hidden Words option under Settings, you can filter spam comments by setting up specific keywords.

When should I report an Instagram account?

Instagram has strict policies and guidelines to create a safe environment for its users.

As part of this, you can report shady accounts by clicking the three dots on the top right of the profile pages and selecting one of the reporting options.

You may use this feature if you notice bot activity or receive messages that promote spam, violence, hatred, or self-harm.

Accounts that impersonate others, spread misinformation, phish for private data using malicious websites and links, or post content of a sexual nature are also prohibited and, therefore, can be reported.

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