Social media scam - Fake Instagram accounts

What has / will be done to tackle to growing number of FAKE / Scam accounts on Instagram??

I haven’t checked other platforms but I can imagine it’s not good!

If we are serious about onboarding and converting from web2 - I think this has to be seriously looked in and a social media strategic team put in place.

This is would be for education and security reasons above and beyond marketing ENS / profiteering - but essentially the both will happen hand in hand if we are seen to be the trusted backbone and landing place for future users…

Here are some screen shots to show you what I mean! - and please NOBODY click on any links on any of the Instagram accounts !! They all look suspect! :warning:


In principle one can request these to be taken down by sending Instagram a DMCA or similar court-issued directive on grounds of trademark infringement.

2 Likes

@inplco Oh no, that would go against my principles, I disagree on this.

If they do promote scams, then it’s fair to send a report. It would also help if the account owner is contacted and ask to confirm that they’re not officially associated by ENS Domains.

Sorry can I just clarify what it is you don’t agree with?

Should there not be verified social media accounts across the board ?

Yes, this would require actual humans / teams of people to manage. Which would require a structured payroll and supervision and auditing.

The costs of which would be marginal in comparison to the amount of Eth currently held.

Sorry, It’s a reply to @inplco. I’ll make it clear on the post.

There should be official Social Media accounts, I agree. And the DAO should probably take initiative on creating those. There is already the official Twitter ENS account, so having other accounts across the board is definitely not in question, at least that I think so.

1 Like

I was only saying it as a suggestion if the DAO wanted to stop the account altogether from spreading fake news. There are many pathways of course, from hardcore to docile.

2 Likes

I’m always weary what the readers might think of our posts in this public forum, they could always spin it to their advantage. We already know other registrars (or at least their supporters) are engaged in spreading misinformation so I thought I would jump in and give my thoughts. :sweat_smile:

1 Like

Yeh I read it as a logical and realistic approach.
Just the only trouble being that you close one down and two more would pop up in place?

I’m quite certain that there is already exisiting undercover social media/ influencer OGs across a large portion of the active community and so getting verified accounts on all platforms would be easy enough.

But it would be a very delicate line in which to tread so as not to turn ENS into a capitalistic centralised nightmare by using social media for ads and or commercial gains…

You should then ask the question that who has the right to claim the trademark on a platform first. To tell someone that they are in violation of your trademark, you must present your own registration of it. There will always be copies but the blue tick should be the target. Scammers get shut down faster if you are a verified trademark. ENS having a verified blue tick account everywhere will solve the problem.

2 Likes

What is the misinformation that is being spread? Looking at your pictures provided, I don’t see that there is anything suspect happening other than use of an official title.

Have you witnessed any of these accounts actively attempting to scam users on the instagram platform?

If so, have they attempted to:

– scam, deceive, appear to knowingly disburse false information for personal gain, send hyperlinks that appear to direct (vic.) to harmful websites that contain malware, viruses, any javascript or other code patterns that would release information about (vic.) or unknowingly allow access to (vic.) device(s) by the alleged intruder

I’d advise you to collect screenshots, text or any other evidence of any attempts of anything described above and forward them to Instagram via e-mail.

Given these circumstances or any at all, ENS has no influence or authority on Instagram policy regarding username usage or Instagram Terms of Service.

Personally, I don’t think there is a real justifiable use for ENS to have an Instagram Account at all. I believe that each platform is intended for a specific-use and I don’t see Instagram being a beneficial asset for ENS. Except that if the mere existence of an official ENS Instagram account would deter duplicitous and unethical behaviours like phishing, scamming etc., but that appears to not be the issues and would remain ineffective

I would also like to add that we are not here to police other platforms or it’s users on what they can or can not do.

I understand your concern and the ENS DAO and the community appreciate your notion of it’s importance and the overall effect it has on the ecosystem. This is the sort of proactivity a strong community needs to succeed.