As of late, many vulgar and suggestive comments are being found on Instagram posts. Not only this, these comments can be found in the comment thread of almost every hugely followed user’s posts. These comments receive a ton of likes, due to which they start appearing at the top of posts, ensuring that maximum people notice them.
The common thing about these comments is that they are posted by fake profiles and include pictures and videos of scantily clad women, to make you surf through the profile and subscribe to their questionable services such as porn sites. The site links are usually given along with the account description and some sites even require a user’s personal information. Another common thing found in most of these profiles is the similarity in usernames. This makes us assume if all of this is being done by a network of bots.
There are several types of vulgar comments posted by these profiles but the most commonly used one out of them has got to be, “We gonna ignore the fact that I've GOT A HUGE BOOTY”. To make them look genuine, these profiles also post stories. They usually get caught due to abundance of typos and errors in their comments and Stories.
The bots’ presence in the comment section has increased by leaps and bounds over the past few months and some Instagram users themselves are having fun with them now. They are mocking the comments with their own versions of the bots’ vulgar comments such as, “are we gonna ignore the fact that I have a BIG HEART”. One other popular comment is, “These damn bots are getting out of hand @Instagram. Do something about it Zucks.”
To tackle this issue, someone has created an Account by the name, “Bot Police”. The account has established a fan base of its own and reported a number of scam comments. The account’s main aim is to get Instagram rid of bots by next year.
However, not all bot accounts depend on sexually suggestive content to trap users. Some are known for selling fake services such as offering followers in exchange of money. Such kind of comments can also be found easily on Instagram posts. In addition to that, fake verification badges are also being offered. To top it all, there have been instances when the scam profile offering the verification badges was itself a verified one. However, Instagram has assured that the verified profile through which the scam activity was done, was hacked but it was taken care of eventually.
It should be noted that a verification badge can’t be purchased on Instagram. Users need to apply for it via the official Instagram app.
According to Engadget's investigation, Instagram is well aware of the issue and is working hard to tackle it as the bot scandal is more than just a joke and with over a billion users, there’s a strong chance that countless people run into such comments and messages, and actually believe them to be authentic.
Thus, it’s high time for Instagram to become proactive and take care of this issue as Scammers have found a new platform to carry on their operations and if Instagram doesn’t wish to get involved in the same controversies as parent company, Facebook, it should do everything in its power to prevent these deceptive actions from taking place on the platform.
Photo: Reuters/Charles Platiau
Read next: 20 Percent of All Web Traffic Is from Malicious Bots
The common thing about these comments is that they are posted by fake profiles and include pictures and videos of scantily clad women, to make you surf through the profile and subscribe to their questionable services such as porn sites. The site links are usually given along with the account description and some sites even require a user’s personal information. Another common thing found in most of these profiles is the similarity in usernames. This makes us assume if all of this is being done by a network of bots.
There are several types of vulgar comments posted by these profiles but the most commonly used one out of them has got to be, “We gonna ignore the fact that I've GOT A HUGE BOOTY”. To make them look genuine, these profiles also post stories. They usually get caught due to abundance of typos and errors in their comments and Stories.
The bots’ presence in the comment section has increased by leaps and bounds over the past few months and some Instagram users themselves are having fun with them now. They are mocking the comments with their own versions of the bots’ vulgar comments such as, “are we gonna ignore the fact that I have a BIG HEART”. One other popular comment is, “These damn bots are getting out of hand @Instagram. Do something about it Zucks.”
To tackle this issue, someone has created an Account by the name, “Bot Police”. The account has established a fan base of its own and reported a number of scam comments. The account’s main aim is to get Instagram rid of bots by next year.
However, not all bot accounts depend on sexually suggestive content to trap users. Some are known for selling fake services such as offering followers in exchange of money. Such kind of comments can also be found easily on Instagram posts. In addition to that, fake verification badges are also being offered. To top it all, there have been instances when the scam profile offering the verification badges was itself a verified one. However, Instagram has assured that the verified profile through which the scam activity was done, was hacked but it was taken care of eventually.
It should be noted that a verification badge can’t be purchased on Instagram. Users need to apply for it via the official Instagram app.
According to Engadget's investigation, Instagram is well aware of the issue and is working hard to tackle it as the bot scandal is more than just a joke and with over a billion users, there’s a strong chance that countless people run into such comments and messages, and actually believe them to be authentic.
Thus, it’s high time for Instagram to become proactive and take care of this issue as Scammers have found a new platform to carry on their operations and if Instagram doesn’t wish to get involved in the same controversies as parent company, Facebook, it should do everything in its power to prevent these deceptive actions from taking place on the platform.
Photo: Reuters/Charles Platiau
Read next: 20 Percent of All Web Traffic Is from Malicious Bots
