5 Expert Hacks to Avoid Social Media Scams

3 min readApr 28, 2023

Social media is all fun and functional until it’s not. It helps you grow, promote your business, and connect with new people and potential clients. However, if not used carefully, it can lead to danger. We have seen many cases of catfishing, stealing private information, uploading pictures on inappropriate websites, and more.

I was recently in a conversation with Dr. Ravinder Singhal. As an IPS officer, he has dealt with criminals for most of his career, and I learned so much about cybersecurity from him. He shared how people get entangled in social media scams, and such cases are rapidly increasing. So, today, let’s find ways to be careful while using social media.

1. Turn on your privacy settings

If it’s a personal account filled with your photos, it is best to make the account private. That way, no one can access your pictures and create a fake account or, worse, misuse the pictures.

Many people cannot afford to do so because they are influencers. In that case, it is best to be vigilant and look for fake accounts or spam messages in your DMs. If you find something fishy, immediately report it to social media security services or, in more severe cases, drop it at the police stations. It will be one of the ways to avoid social media scams.

2. Do not post real-time updates

This cannot be stressed more, never turn on your geolocation or use apps that capture location automatically. Whether you are a person of public interest or an ordinary citizen, whether you have a hundred or million followers, it is never wise to give real-time location updates on social media.

Sensitive information will help miscreants. Details about the hotel you are staying at or the flight you are taking can be dangerous if it falls into the wrong hands.

3. Introspect before posting

Just remember this, nothing is ever deleted from social media, and it’s stored somewhere. Someone can download and save any form of media or even take screenshots. Basically, nothing is ever entirely deleted. To avoid social media scams, check twice what you post.

Keep a few checkpoints in mind: does it have any sensitive information like your house address, car registration number, or bank documents? Are you comfortable sharing this media with other people, most of whom are strangers?

4. Do not allow suspicious accounts

If you find a follow request from someone with no profile picture or what seems like a potential spam account, don’t allow it. And if you have mistakenly allowed it, remove them from your friend list.

Don’t reply to every link in your DMs, no matter how tempting it may appear. In fact, it is best not to respond to absolute strangers’ DMs; if you do, please check their profile thoroughly.

5. Do not hesitate to report

Even if you get into a social media scam after being vigilant, never hesitate to report it. It may seem trivial, but one thing leads to another, and it may turn out disastrous. So it’s always best to report.

If you find an unwanted picture or video of yourself surfing around the internet, take steps. Always remember it is never the victim’s fault. So before things get out of hand and lead to something bigger, always take assistance from the appropriate authority.

It may seem difficult, but social media is not that complicated. You must be vigilant and follow a few simple steps; it will all be fun again.

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