Instagram had been working on several investigations that included checking every account that had similar names/usernames. The Social media giant, under Facebook, banished hundreds of accounts that were using usernames that had been stolen. Many of them had been functioning through original names and were hacked. This was announced on Thursday morning. These accounts had also been regulated under blackmailing, harassment, as well as extortions.
Instagram has also been in conversations with other famous social networking applications to remove such accounts with stolen single usernames. The media houses include Twitter as well as TikTok. The crackdown began yesterday but has followed a month’s worth of heavy investigation. Such usernames, like @miracle, @sick, or @killer, are catchy and are of higher priority as they were claimed way back in the early stages of social networking. These usernames are traded through messaging applications by cybercriminals or even on some dedicated forums.
Cyber Criminals On Instagram
Ogusers.com is one of the most popular sites where such trading of Instagram usernames take place. Some usernames, Instagram found, could be sold for as high as 40,000 dollars. For several years, these manipulations have not been unchecked. The mentioned forum was also responsible for where several other hacks took place in the past year, most notably of Elon Musk, as well as former US President Obama. Many other celebrities were also affected by it.
Ajay, an entrepreneur from Los Angeles, was also affected by this. His Instagram username, @Ajay, had been claimed way back in time. Hence, he has been harassed and offered to sell his username on several occasions. He has, however, declined it every time. But in 2019, in February, he was finally a victim of SIM swap. When he got his access back, he realized that his Instagram was hacked into.
But as of lately, such cybercriminals indulge in blackmailing, as well as threats.
