Someone is Impersonating Me on Instagram

Every social media platform provides users with unlimited possibilities of the version of themselves they want to present to the world. For some though, this, unfortunately, means a version of themselves that is far from reality. These culprits often impersonate someone that is not themselves, living a double life. This most frequently happens on Instagram because the platform is predominantly solely photo-based. When this happens, not only are they catfishing their followers, but they are also using photos of a real person who is ultimately affected.

While there are documentaries that portray situations like this, those documentaries often portray extreme examples of this (like The Tinder Swindler). Whether someone is using your photographs to try to scam people into investing money or to try to make their online profile appear a certain way for dating apps, when you are the one affected, it’s anything but a pleasant experience. 

If you find yourself in a situation where someone is impersonating you on Instagram, don’t fret. Below we take a deeper dive into what steps you should take if someone is impersonating you on Instagram so you can feel well prepared to take care of the matter.

1. Collect Evidence

If you catch someone impersonating you on Instagram, before doing anything else, take screenshots of the photos and evidence. This is proof that shows that your photos are being used on another Instagram account that is not your own.

If the impersonator is using photos that also include photos of family members, coworkers, or other friends, screenshot those as well. The more people that are included in the stolen photos, the more people that are being brought into this scam, so it’s important to capture all the evidence you can.

2. Report the profile

Once you encounter a fake profile, you can take the next step which is to report that profile. Head over to the imposter’s Instagram profile and tap on the three dots on the upper right-hand side of the profile. Once you click this, you’ll see a list of options that you can select. You’ll want to select “Report profile.” From there, you’ll be provided with three options – “someone I know,” “celebrity or public figure,” and “me.” If you’re the one being impersonated, you’ll want to select that third option.

After that option is selected, you’ll be brought to Instagram’s help page which brings you to step 3.

3. Share the details of the impersonation with Instagram

On Instagram’s Help Center page, you’ll have to sift through a few of the different topics and selections. When you find “If someone is pretending to be you on Instagram you can report the account with this form,” then you’ve found the right place. The form that Instagram has you fill out asks for details like your full name, your email address, the name that you have for your impersonator, and the impersonator’s Instagram username.

The final step on the form asks you to upload a selfie holding a valid form of a government-issued ID. A driver’s license can suffice for this step. You’ll want to make sure that whatever form of ID you use matches the information that is listed on the account.

4. Instagram will remove the impersonator’s account

When you fill out Instagram’s report, Instagram will review the request and remove the photos of you from the impersonator’s account. For many impersonators, this is the only way to get the photos removed. Many people who have experienced this have reached out to their impersonator for their photos to be removed but reporting the impersonator to Instagram has been the only thing that has worked.

What If You Don’t Have an Instagram?

If you don’t have an Instagram account yourself, you can still report the impersonator’s profile. Instead of heading to Instagram to click on the impersonator’s profile to report it, you can simply fill out this form instead. 

As you navigate this four-step process, you’ll realize quickly that Instagram takes matters like this seriously. That means that if you ever encounter an impersonator who is pretending to be you on the platform, you can report it at any time. Additionally, you don’t have to be the one affected to report an impersonator. Instagram also accepts reports from a representative of the person being reported (like a parent). 

Also with Instagram, confidentiality is a top concern. That means that you don’t need to be hesitant to report the impersonator if you are nervous that they will find out who reported them. Instagram keeps every report anonymous so they will never find out, and you never have to worry about that.

How to Find All Fake Accounts Out There

Now that you know how to remove anyone impersonating you on Instagram, you may be wondering how you can find out if there are imposter accounts out there. Social Catfish is the answer you are looking for.

With Social Catfish, you can run a reverse image search of your profile images, or just any photo on your Instagram account, to see if they are posted on any other accounts. This is the easiest (and quickest) way to protect yourself from people impersonating you on Instagram. After this quick reverse image search on Social Catfish, you’ll know if there are any imposter accounts out there you need to report and you can go on with your day stress-free.