

"About 10% of the time, I couldn't figure out why, but they would tell me that, no, in fact even though that was a photo of me, and it wasn't my account, that was a legitimate account," Kurkjian said. Kurkjian said he has received the same response from the platform after becoming obsessed with reporting every imposter account he could find while overseas. Milly Berst, a web developer in the Netherlands, who said she has reported hundreds of imposters to Instagram for more than three years, also had her real account suspended in 2019 after flagging a steady stream of fakes. (Facebook, which recently renamed itself Meta, owns Instagram.) "So super ironic that I've been battling imposters this entire time and my account is tied to an 11-year old Facebook account," he said. Less than a week later, Kurkjian said his account popped back up as active with no explanation from the company. He followed Instagram's instructions to prove he was the real Bob Kurkjian by providing a copy of his passport along with other documentation, but he said nothing happened until CNBC reached out to the company's public relations team explaining the confusion.

The account closure was particularly stressful for Kurkjian because he used it to stay in touch with family while serving overseas. "A message popped up saying Instagram believes you violated the terms of service," Kurkjian said. One day when he logged on to Instagram from his iPad in Afghanistan, Kurkjian learned that his real account had been shut down. In the end, the victim lost $20,000 in the scheme. When he sought to make a withdrawal he was asked for additional funds to cover bogus fees and commissions. The Texas resident said one of Sallman's impersonators started by convincing him to invest $500 on a bogus trading platform that showed his investment sky-rocketing to over six-figures. This victim agreed to speak to the network as long as his name wasn't publicly disclosed, for fear the scammer, who has all of his personal information, might retaliate. Sallman connected CNBC with a victim of one of his imposters. "They're like, 'I know where you live.' and all these type of things." "I've gotten threats like, 'I'm gonna kill you, I'm gonna beat you up.' Sallman said. Sallman told CNBC victims of the impostor accounts track down his real account several times a week demanding he return their money. Hidden behind pictures of Sallman's face they push bogus crypto-investment schemes with the intent to lure in unsuspecting IG users and steal thousands of dollars from them. Many of the imposter accounts appear to be run by scammers who engage with other Instagram users pretending to be Jason via direct messages. Personal Loans for 670 Credit Score or Lowerīut the stolen picture problem is bigger than just copyright infringement. Personal Loans for 580 Credit Score or Lower


We often post images on social media without a conscious awareness of why we are doing it or what we hope to achieve by it.Best Debt Consolidation Loans for Bad Credit I am asking these questions, not to judge you, but to encourage your self-awareness. How do you feel when other men comment on your body? Other women?ĭo you want your boyfriend to see your photos? And the comments by other people? How do you feel if no one comments or likes them? Why do you choose bikini photos over other photos to post? Before we look at ol’ mate and his opinions, let’s spend a moment with you. I’m more interested in how you feel about posting revealing photos of yourself on Instagram. Mel Schilling exposes the hidden truth behind posting bikini photos on Instagram when you're in a relationship.
