This is part one of How to protect your Instagram account. Learn how to protect your Instagram account and stay secure.
Social Media is at the crux of modern society, and it has been for over a decade now. As of 2020, 3.6 billion internet users were using social media worldwide. And with Instagram accounting for 1 billion of these social media users monthly, it comes as no surprise that hackers target the popular social media platform.
Getting your Instagram account hacked is a dreadful situation to be in. Even more so when you use the platform to operate your online business.
But do not panic!
We at condition Zebra understand the modus operandi of how cyber attackers launch attacks on your Instagram.
Don’t lose your Instagram account to hackers! Follow these five steps to protect yourself and keep your account secure.
1. Turn ON Two-Factor Authentication.
Instagram recommends enabling two-factor authentication, and we do too! Two-factor authentication adds an additional layer of defence against hackers.
So what is it?
Well, two-factor authentication is a process where a user is required to verify their identity through a security code. If you log into the Instagram application from an unknown device, the application will prompt you to enter the code sent to you in order to confirm it is in fact you.
You can turn on two-factor authentication on Instagram by heading to your settings and tapping ‘two-factor authentication’ and then following the prompts to choose what suits you best. You can choose to get the code sent as a text message to your phone, or as Instagram recommends, use an authentication app. Don’t worry, if you don’t have one, Instagram will recommend one to download. Instagram recently added the ability for a user to use their WhatsApp account to validate their Instagram. That is a welcome third option. So turn on two-factor authentication so you can know when a suspicious device is attempting to access your Instagram account.
2. Keep your phone number and email updated
Your email account is probably linked to all your social media platforms, including Instagram. Sometimes it’s hard to keep track of all the social media and remember which email or phone number is linked. Therefore, you need to keep your email and phone number up to date for Instagram.
In the case of a hacking incident, when you need to retrieve hacked Instagram account, you need the updated and correct email or phone number. Your best bet at gaining control over your account back is through email and phone access.
To add to that, using an old email on an Instagram account that you don’t actually use anymore allows hackers to hack into that email address and send Instagram verification codes without you, the owner of the Instagram account even knowing.
And that is how they lock you out.
So, it’s crucial to update your email and phone number on Instagram. And if that is not enough, feel free to secure your email address with two-factor authentication as well, as you can never be too safe, but you can always be vulnerable.
3. Enable login request
Another new and nifty feature from Instagram, login request allows you to approve logins to your Instagram account from another device where you have already logged into Instagram. Whenever a new login is done to your account on an unknown device, Instagram will send a request to your logged-in Instagram account on a known device. This request contains information as to what device is attempting to access your Instagram account and where this device is located. You can then approve or deny that request to log in from your trusted device. Log-in requests will always be sent when your account is added to a new device. This feature adds to two-factor authentication and makes it even more secure as if it wasn’t secure enough already. Log in request can be found in the additional methods section of two-factor authentication on Instagram.
4. Choose a strong password
A weak password. It’s like taking a knife to a gunfight. Arguably the number one cause when it comes to most hacking and phishing attempts, a weak password makes you extremely vulnerable to hacking.
We would actually suggest that you never make up a password yourself. If your browser doesn’t already automatically generate highly secure passwords for you whenever you attempt to sign up on a new platform, then I’d highly suggest sourcing a password manager that will not only generate auto, highly secure passwords but also store them for you. That way you never have to know your password, and if you, the owner of the account do not know your own password, then certainly hackers can’t know it too right?
An additional step to take would be to use a unique password for each of your social platforms. DO NOT use the same password on multiple social platforms. If hackers get that password, then you lose everything.
5. Report suspicious accounts
Yes, you can protect your account and still be a good steward to Instagram and all its other users. If you feel a particular account is shady, do not hesitate to report it to Instagram. Also spend a good 10 minutes each day reporting all the accounts that send spam messages and links in your message requests. You could be one link click away from losing your entire account.
Instagram and other social media platforms are a huge part of our lives and culture. There will always be people looking to exploit this love we share for connectivity. But that does not mean we have to sit silently and hope we never fall victim, taking the steps above will go a huge distance in securing your account. Additionally, in this digital age, take time to learn about the various ways hackers are exploiting internet users. There are always new methods, and you will be doing yourself a huge service by staying in the know of all these new methods hackers come up with to exploit us. Hackers are clever, but so can we.
Condition Zebra is a leading B2B Cyber Security company, our cybersecurity team is equipped with the relevant knowledge and expertise to not only resolve but also prevent any hacking incidents from manifesting into a significant loss. Do not hesitate to reach out to us to protect and secure your company’s IT Infrastructures such as Network, Server, Web & Mobile apps and others.
Learn about our online distance training:
Network Penetration Testing is suitable for participants that have prior experience in setting up, managing or securing an organization network.
Web Penetration Testing is suitable for participants that have basic programming language and prior experience in managing, developing or testing web applications.
Source:
1. Keeping Instagram Safe and Secure – Instagram
2. How to Protect your Instagram Account from being hacked
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