Why Instagram Safety Tools are a Joke

I’m sitting here going between my keyboard and my turmeric tea, wondering where to begin. Sip. Type. Backspace. Sip. Type. Backspace…

The thing is somebody created an account on Instagram pretending to be me in order to sell sex products. That’s right; somebody out there — who either hates me or has nothing better to do with their time (or both) — is impersonating me online.

Okay, maybe I should start from the beginning.

Last week, as I soon as I opened my eyes, I got an Instagram message notification. It was from someone who I think has never messaged me out of nowhere before, so, naturally, I opened it right away. 

“I think somebody is using your photos,” he said.

I was confused and, mind you, still disoriented since I had just woken up. So it took me a minute to process what he was saying. He then tried to send me the profile that was using my photos, but on my end, I could only see “Unavailable.” The fake profile blocked me. 

After receiving a screen shot, I tried looking for the username. That’s when I realized I was blocked. So I looked it up with another account and…I was livid, and pretty disturbed. Not only did they keep the user handle almost the same as mine, but they’re also are using my name and pictures of me wearing just a bathing suit to sell whatever the hell they’re selling to my male followers and beyond.

Luckily, this friend of mine sensed it was out of character and messaged me, but not everybody was as quick and alert. I’m still asking people to report that account and block it, but I’m not sure that it’s working. I can’t deny that it bothers me. I am frustrated.

This is not the first time something like this happens. Back then, when I used to upload videos on Youtube, I found that my videos had been downloaded and reposted somewhere else. The difference is that the act of reposting them could do no harm. It’s the Internet. I understand that if I post publicly I’m going to be seen, possibly everywhere.

I’ve always advocated for posting at your own risk. But when somebody intentionally targets your account; digs into your profile and scans each and every picture, and essentially makes a profile pretending to be you, to make profit out of it, that is a criminal offense, my friends.

From all the reports I’ve submitted to Instagram, I got this (automated) answer back:

It’s laughable. But it’s not a joke.

“We take your safety seriously,” says Facebook/Instagram. FFS! I don’t see where…

Their automated response is unacceptable and unreliable, so I urge everybody to stay alert.

This experience made me realized, even more, that Instagram has a HUGE problem. They have a community too large to have this little policing. And this is the same platform that expects me to trust them with my photo ID in order for them to delete the fake profile (a big maybe)? I don’t think so.

For now, I’ll just keep reporting the fake account and hope for the best. They can steal my pictures, but they will never have the personality that goes with it — and that is really worth something.

If anyone has any more tips on what to do if you’re being impersonated on social media, or wants to join me in reporting the fake profile (I’ll leave the details below), I will really, really, appreciate it. 

DETAILS

My IG account is: MissMarciaC

Fake IG account: MisssMarrciaCC

Notice the different spellings!

Thank you for reading. 🖤