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I eliminated my social media presence, and I've never felt better. Try it! I've experienced pretty significant mental and social health improvements thanks to not reading everyone's thoughts in a public forum, and as an amazing bonus, I also get fewer scam emails, texts, and robocalls. How did this happen? When I locked down or deleted my old social media profiles, I also blocked access for potential scammers. Keep reading for a list of common scam warning signs, followed by tips for shutting down social media swindlers.
Scammers Have Social Media Addictions, Too
To answer the headline, lots of people are falling for scams that start with an online interaction, and it's nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, according to a Federal Trade Commission report, people lost an eye-watering $2.1 billion to scammers who interacted with them on social media platforms.
Anyone can be ensnared by a scammer, especially when criminals use familiar photos on social media to commit identity theft. Recently, the FBI warned that criminals are using generative AI apps to create deepfakes using your public social media photos and videos. Scammers could use those visual or vocal clones to pretend to be you while they rip off your family and friends. Scammers also snag cloning material from celebrities, which is why you should ignore that DM from Tom Hanks. He doesn't need your money, and he never will.
Facebook and Instagram are not where cool kids hang out these days, but globally, Facebook still has the most monthly visits, with over 3 billion monthly active users, while Instagram has 2 billion, and TikTok has 1.5 billion. That's a massive pool of victims for a potential scammer.
What Are the Biggest Social Media Scams?
Social media fraudsters can take many forms, but the best advice I've received for spotting scams is to stay skeptical. Take your time when responding on all online platforms, think critically, and remember that not every message warrants a response. It's far better to appear slightly impolite than overly credulous. Only one of those options is likely to leave you with little to no legal recourse to recover stolen data or money.
Here is a non-exhaustive list of popular social media scams you may encounter on social apps like Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter/X, or TikTok. I’ve added a short description of the warning signs for each scam and how you can protect yourself.
1. Phishing Scams
Avoid phishing links in DMs, emails, posts, or text messages. These links could infect your computer or device with malware or direct you to a spoofed website that captures your login credentials. Do not click on links sent by strangers. Hover over links you receive from people you know, and examine the URL. Do not click a link if it directs you to an unfamiliar or misspelled web address.
2. Romance Scams
You may receive flirty direct messages and friend requests from intriguing strangers on dating apps and your social media accounts. Scammers don't need malware and phishing links to part you from your money when good old-fashioned social engineering will do. Avoid sharing personal information with a stranger who strikes up a conversation with you online. Do not send them money for any reason.
3. Job Offer Scams
Did you spot a job posting on your Facebook feed that sounds too good to be true? Do not engage with the post on the social media platform. Instead, go directly to the company website to view the job listing and apply. Job offer scams typically instruct potential victims to complete web forms with their personal information. The scammer then uses that information to impersonate or commit identity theft.
4. Fake Shopping Scams
Online scammers love holiday shopping seasons, like Christmas and Thanksgiving, because they know people will be distracted and unprepared for any scam that comes their way. Adding to this, buying anything online means you have to divulge some personal data, usually in the form of credit card details and a mailing address, at a minimum. Scammers take advantage of the situation by creating fake websites that appear to be real online retailers. They can then steal your financial data and login credentials when you try to check out.
5. Quiz and Game Scams
As with your social media posts, your personality quiz responses are often the kind of information you use to create passwords or answer security questions. To keep scammers from getting any of that information, I recommend not taking part in the quizzes at all or lying when you answer questions.
6. Charity Scams
Beware of fake charity pleas, especially those centered on major disasters. Anyone can create a page on GoFundMe or a similar charity website, so thoroughly research and vet a fundraiser before contributing to a cause.
7. Investment Scams
Scammers may promise a massive return for a small investment and disappear when it's time to pay up. Do not ever give strangers money online.
8. Brand Collaboration Requests
Every budding influencer receives a torrent of spam messages on Instagram offering payment for product promotion. Some offers may be legit, but many contain phishing links. If you want to work with a brand, ask the brand manager to contact you via video chat to ensure you speak to a legitimate company. Get your financial agreement in writing and hire a lawyer to review it before signing.
9. Selling Followers and Likes
A scammer may ask you to pay a nominal fee in exchange for likes or follow packages and then steal your financial data when you send details. Build your audience organically, and keep your payment information out of scammers' hands.
How to Fend Off Social Media Scammers
Your social media posts are a treasure trove of valuable information. Your public contact list alone can help a criminal: The list of names connected to your public social media accounts is enough for a scammer to impersonate you to a family member or a friend with just an email. Give strangers less access to your personal life by trying these seven steps for locking down your social media activity:
1. Evaluate Your Privacy Settings
Your social accounts are all public by default, so anyone can see your posts. Set your account to “private” so only approved followers can see your posts, comments, and send direct messages. Some platforms don't let you fully lock down your account. For example, you can't hide your profile pictures or cover photos on Facebook, but you can hide almost everything else from people who aren't on your contact list by tweaking the platform's privacy settings.
2. Use a Password Manager and Enable MFA
One of the easiest ways to prevent unauthorized logins to your accounts is to store your login credentials in a password manager and enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) for each account. Consider using an authenticator app or hardware security key to do this. You can also create passkeys for your accounts, so you don't have to enter a username or password when logging in on your devices anymore.
3. Keep Track of Third-Party Apps
You might have many third-party applications connected to your social media accounts. For example, on Instagram, you can see which apps and websites are connected by visiting the Settings section of your account profile and navigating to a section labeled “Apps and Websites.” If you see one you do not recognize, it could be a malicious app spying on your online activity. Review the list and delete any you don't use frequently or don't remember installing.
4. Buy Only From Verified Profiles and Brand Accounts
Before purchasing anything via a social media platform, verify the seller's account. Legitimate brands on Instagram and Facebook are verified by the platform and have a blue circle checkmark next to their names.
5. Perform Quarterly Name Searches
Impersonation can happen to anyone. To avoid the damage of someone using your name, photos, or other personal information against you or your social network, make a habit of searching Facebook and Instagram for your name. It takes just a minute and is an easy way to identify and report impostor accounts.
6. Decline Friend Requests From Strangers
Not everyone wants to be your friend. Don't accept friend requests from people you don’t know. The more strangers in your friends list, the higher the risk you will be approached with a scam.
7. Ignore Suspicious Links and Unsolicited Messages
Avoid clicking on unsolicited videos or links—even when you recognize the sender's name—whether in an email or a private message. If you think a friend sent you something, double-check with them via phone or text before clicking the link. Be especially wary of messages containing phrases such as “OMG! Is this you?” or “Have you seen this yet?!”
Bonus Tip: Lie
Right now, you might be saying to yourself, "Every company and criminal already has all of my information. Let them fight over selling my private photos, videos, and other information forever. The data brokers will always be the only winners here. I gave up long ago."
I get the sentiment, but you don't have to keep all your personal information online up to date or accurate. My final suggestion is to scam the scammers by lying on your social media profiles. It is perfectly legal to poison your own data well, so to speak. People who know you will know that's not your real birthdate, and you don't live in Costa Rica. Confusing scammers with information that conflicts with existing data may make you a less attractive mark.
You can always avoid scamming situations by cutting back on social media. You don't have to stop posting on your favorite social platform, but limiting the content in your public feed is wise. You don't know who is reading your words or viewing your photos or what they intend to do with that information. By limiting the amount of information about you that's available to the public, you decrease your chances of being impersonated or targeted by a scammer. When you're ready to be anonymous online, check out our guide for completely disappearing from the internet.