How To Find Out Who Is Behind a Fake Instagram Account?

The wrath of fake social media accounts is nothing new. In fact, with each passing day, more fake Instagram accounts are flooding the platform. Getting to work across the anonymity of the account can be a hassle for many of us.

However, would you ever want to find out who is running these fake Instagram accounts? Getting to uncover the true identity of the potential user not only enables you to steer clear of them but also prioritizes and protects your privacy.

Be it for harassment, scams, or even spreading false information, fake Instagram accounts are nothing but a nuisance. We will uncover all the potential strategies you need to know to unveil the true identity behind them.

4 Reasons You Need to be Wary of Fake Instagram Accounts

Some fake Instagram accounts might not be causing you any direct harm, but their existence might be used for something much more sinister than you truly understand.

Irrespective of whether or not you are on a direct path or interacting with a fake Instagram account, being aware of the risks is crucial. Following are a few reasons why you need to be wary of such accounts:

• With the consistent rise of cyberbullying and harassment on social media platforms, there has been a steep rise in the number of fake Instagram accounts, too. These often target the vulnerable users on the platform, flooding their comment section and direct messages with derogatory and abusive messages and obscenities.
• There are numerous cases where fake Instagram accounts are leveraged to carry out frauds and scams and launder money and other perks from people by misleading them.
• There is often a barrage of fake accounts on Instagram that are open to spreading misinformation and manipulating public opinion.
• Identity theft is a growing problem on social media where these fake accounts are impersonated to be someone famous, using their photos and personal information to scam people.

Knowing about these potential risks associated with fake Instagram accounts makes it easier for you to identify them and overcome the complications that come with their existence.

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5 Features to Spot a Fake Instagram Account

Before highlighting and discussing the strategies to help you determine who runs the fake Instagram account, the first step is identifying a fake account. Once you get that out of the way, it is easier to go into “detective mode” to unveil who’s running the ropes in the background.

Following are a few features to look out for:

1. Profile Picture

Without a doubt, the first thing you need to assess in an Instagram account is the profile picture. This should give you an idea of whether or not the account is genuine or simply a backup or fake account, for that matter. If you notice no profile picture or a stock picture of a model, scenery, etc., there is a high chance it is a fake account.

2. Username

People who run fake Instagram accounts are often not bothered by setting up a good username for their account. In such instances, the easy way to spot a fake account is by checking whether it has a string of random letters or numbers in it.

3. Followers and Following

If you find that the ratio between following and followers is suspicious, wherein the number of people the account follows is much more than the number of followers they have, there is a 100% chance that it is a fake account. On occasions, such accounts are bot accounts, too.

4. Account Activity

Unless the account is private, checking their activity is a great way to gauge whether it is genuine. You can check their posts, the kind of comments and interactions they indulge in, and whether they have a habit of posting copied content from other sources.

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5. Content Posted

If the account is active and has numerous posts, check out the kind of content they are posting. In most cases, these accounts tend to upload a random collection of images and videos with no correlation to each other. This could also be a sign that it is a fake Instagram account.

Once you have gone through the individual features in your “fake Instagram account” checklist, you can then go ahead and follow different strategies to find out who is running the account in the first place.

8 Ways to Find Who Is Behind the Fake Instagram Account

Now that you are wary of the different factors to spot a fake Instagram account, it is time for you to implement different strategies to find out who is behind the account.

1. Google the Username

If you are browsing through Instagram and have been suspicious of an account being fake, the easiest way to confirm your suspicions is by googling the username. On several occasions, people who create fake social media accounts tend to use the same username for pretty much all the other platforms, too. So, if you come across other accounts on other social media platforms with similar content posted, it is a telltale sign that the account is fake.

On occasion, you might be able to get hold of connected social media accounts with the said username, giving away who is running the account.

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2. Check out the Followers

The following and the list of account followers is another way to discover who could be behind the fake Instagram account. Most of the time, when the account is fake, it has the tendency to follow and have a following of other “fake and bot” accounts.

In some instances, you might come across usernames that indicate the real identity of the person running the fake account, too.

3. Use Reverse Image Search

If the fake Instagram account is public and has posted numerous videos and pictures on its feed, you can use that to your benefit. The easiest option to check the source of the media uploaded is through a reverse image search on Google.

For this, you need to go on Google, upload the image you want to search the details for, and then let the scanning begin. You should be able to navigate through the results and see if you can somehow find details that link back to the original owner of the fake account.

4. Make Use of Location Tracking Feature

This might be a hit or miss, depending on the privacy settings of the Instagram account. However, if the fake Instagram account has its location feature enabled, you should be able to check that and find out which country the account is based in.

Not only that, but you can also check the individual posts on the account and see if they updated the location when they uploaded the media. Having an idea about the location should help you narrow down the potential identity of the account’s owner more precisely.

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5. Check Profile Linked Accounts

Sometimes, the fake Instagram accounts might have websites or other accounts linked in their bio section. While it might feel unsafe to go ahead and click on these random links simply, they are one of the easiest ways to find out more details about the founder of the fake account on Instagram.

For example, in some cases, you might find that the link in the bio redirects you to a different website or social media platform. If that’s the case, it should help you better navigate the situation and learn more about the account.

6. Request a Password Request

This is not necessarily a direct (or conventional) method, but it works. To do this, you must open Instagram’s login page, enter the username, and click the “Forgot password?” option.

You will find that clicking on it will lead to a pop-up message saying that the “password request” link has been redirected to either an email or the connected mobile number. Identifying the last digits or the number or email mentioned should help you figure out who is potentially running the fake Instagram account.

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7. Engage with the Account

If you suspect that the fake Instagram account that’s bothering you or making you suspicious is someone that you know, a great way to find the account’s owner is by engaging with the account.

While most fake accounts will not necessarily engage with other users, you might be surprised by some that do. In such instances, conversing with them should help you learn more about the account user and track their identity.

8. Use Third-Party Tools

Although not foolproof, specific third-party tools and software allow you to identify who is behind the fictitious Instagram accounts. You should be able to track them down using these tools in those cases.

However, you also have to keep in consideration that Meta (Instagram’s parent company) is extremely stringent with their user privacy, which means that they don’t always allow third-party apps to infringe on their user’s data, even if it is a fake account.

Final Words

With so many limitations, it is often difficult to spot a fake Instagram account and find out who is running it. In such instances, the strategies mentioned in this guide should help you navigate the complications and find out who is likely behind the fake Instagram account you are suspicious about.

As a business especially, monitoring and filtering out these fake Instagram accounts is important to ensure that your business data isn’t compromised and your account isn’t affected.

The post How To Find Out Who Is Behind a Fake Instagram Account? appeared first on Entrepreneurship Life.