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Instagram Fights Cybercrime With New Security Checkup Feature
Security Checkup is a new Instagram feature that helps users recover accounts which may have been compromised.
From politicians to small business owners to regular users, it’s no secret that Instagrammers from all walks of life are being targeted by cybercriminals. Now, Instagram is finally doing something to increase the security of its users.
On its official blog, the social media giant (Instagram is the fifth largest social network in the world when ranked by the number of active users) has recently announced the launch of a new feature called Security Checkup.
The purpose of Security Checkup is to guide Instagram users whose accounts may have been hacked through the steps needed to secure them.
“This includes checking login activity, reviewing profile information, confirming the accounts that share login information and updating account recovery contact information such as phone number or email,” explains Instagram.
Of course, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, which is why Instagram recommends its users to enable two-factor authentication and login request, update their contact information, and report contact and accounts they find questionable.
Instagram stressed that it never sends direct messages to users. Instead, the social network communicates with its large userbase only via email, and users can see all emails from Instagram in the Emails from Instagram tab in the settings menu.
Likewise, users should exercise caution when messaging with people they don’t know well, even if their accounts have been verified. “Over the past few months, we’ve seen a rise in malicious accounts DMing people to try and access sensitive information like account passwords,” Instagram clarified.
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While the Security Checkup feature isn’t the solution some users have been hoping for, there’s no doubt that it’s a step in the right direction. Hopefully, Instagram will maintain its focus on cybersecurity and keep increasing the security of its users, helping them defend themselves against cybercriminals.