Have you ever wondered how to protect your Instagram account from being hacked?
In January 2022, there was a series of cases of Instagram accounts being hacked and used to scam people.
To help people protect themselves, the program Encontro, from Rede Globo, invited our expert Marcelo Nagy for a segment where he talked about this type of scam and how to protect yourself from having your Instagram account hacked.
Check out these 5 tips on how to protect your Instagram account from being hacked!
How Hackers Hack Instagram
Imagine the scene: you’re watching Instagram stories after an exhausting day, when suddenly, you come across a personal profile advertising a refrigerator for an incredible price. The justification is that the person is moving and the appliance doesn’t fit in the new house.
As it’s the profile of someone you know, you trust it and immediately think about not missing the opportunity. To not waste time, you negotiate via direct message, reach an agreement, transfer the money via PIX, and when you send the receipt, you get a nice “block.”
Nervous, you try to find out through other means and discover that you never spoke to the owner of the profile or that the offer even existed, but instead, you spoke to hackers who had hacked into your acquaintance’s Instagram account.
This is not a fiction story but a digital scam increasingly used by criminals, reinforcing the importance of social media users learning to protect their profiles from invasions.
How to Protect Your Instagram Account from Being Hacked: Check out These 5 Steps!
1- Enable two-factor authentication
Two-factor authentication provides an extra layer of security, requiring more than one password when logging in from a new device.
But beware: two-factor authentication linked to email addresses or phone numbers is not very secure. If your email is hacked or your number is cloned, hackers will have easy access to your networks.
The solution in this case is to link the social network’s two-factor authentication to an authentication app, which works like a bank key, changing the access code from time to time.
2- Have strong passwords
In 2022, one of the most used passwords by internet users continues to be the numeric sequence from 1 to 6 (or up to the number of required characters). The list of most used passwords still includes obvious variations of this.
If you want to protect yourself from Instagram hacks, or from any other platform, having strong passwords needs to be your mantra.
What are strong passwords?
Passwords with a minimum of eight characters, including letters, numbers, special symbols, and a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, and that are unique for that login.
Yes, you should not repeat passwords on platforms unless you want to risk having all your accesses hacked at once.
You don’t need to worry about your memory to remember all the strong passwords if you use a password manager.
3- Be careful where you click
Never click on links sent by unknown people, and even on those sent by acquaintances, it is ideal to verify through another channel if the person actually sent you the direct message.
This caution also extends to other social networks and emails. The use of links that install malicious software, enabling the invasion of networks and devices, is one of the most common practices used by cybercriminals.
4- Being suspicious is never too much
Has a profile contacted you asking for personal data or other sensitive information? Do not provide it.
More than technology, hackers use social engineering to deceive their victims, leading to decision-making that facilitates and opens the way for criminal action.
So, the rule is: in the digital world, being suspicious is never too much.
5- Protect your devices
All of these actions, however, may be of little value in preventing your Instagram account from being hacked if you do not protect your devices.
In addition to keeping systems and applications always updated, eliminating vulnerabilities, it is important to have a reliable and effective antivirus, active. Even among the free options, you can find good options to minimize risks.
Protect your Instagram and avoid being a victim of account invasion
Today, our lives are tied to social media. When an Instagram account is hacked, in addition to scams being applied to others, digital criminals gain access to the victim’s intimacy. Therefore, taking measures that help minimize the risk of Instagram account invasion is fundamental.
Our partner, an expert in information security and digital forensic expert, Marcelo Nagy, appeared on the program Encontro, in January 2022, to talk about this scam, giving valuable and understandable tips on how to protect yourself from Instagram account invasion. All this in the midst of a delightful chat with Patrícia Poeta, Manoel Soares, and the audience of the program.
You can check out this segment and learn more about how to protect your Instagram account from invasions here.
Want to know more about how to have a safer digital life and protect yourself from cyber scams? Stay tuned to our blog and follow STWBrasil’s page on social media. With us, you always find quality information, attested by experts.
Until next time.
