Sick scammer stole my innocent Instagram photos & used them as ‘porn bait' – one question still haunts me

Scottish Sun

5 hours ago

Sun reporter Katie Davis says the scammers had gone to extreme lengths to make the fake account using her images appear legit
TWISTED SCAM Sick scammer stole my innocent Instagram photos & used them as 'porn bait' – one question still haunts me
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WHEN Sun reporter Katie Davis had a sudden influx of messages blowing up her phone it didn't seem like much of a cause for concern.
But she quickly felt stomach-churning horror when she realised someone had stolen images from her Instagram page and uploaded them onto a fake porn site.
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Sun reporter Katie Davis had her identity stolen
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The fake Instagram account impersonating Katie
Credit: Katie Davis
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A bogus 'PocketStars' account was made on a Wix page
Credit: Katie Davis
A near identical Instagram account to her own had been set up by the scammers, using snaps taken from her private page, with a link to a bogus site for "uncensored" content.
Its intention - to lure unsuspecting victims into handing over cash.
Katie was left battling to get the account taken down and her images removed from the dodgy site.
But what was worse was knowing that one of her own followers could have been part of the sick plot to steal her identity.
Here she shares her ordeal and calls for social media companies to do more to protect users online...
'Hey, is this actually you?'
I rolled my eyes as I went to open the Instagram message from a friend - assuming it would be some sort of joke picture.
But before I could unlock my phone, it started buzzing uncontrollably as I was inundated with messages from my followers.
The slight air of concern I felt turned into sheer horror as I stared down at the screenshots in my inbox.
Fury really ignited within me when I opened the link to the sham subscription-based porn page - welcoming duped members to my "uncensored life"
Katie Davis
My photos and name had been cloned to create a second profile with a near identical handle - advertising a link to a fake adult content site.
In a sick attempt to lure in my male followers, the Instagram page was labelled a "private backup account".
Fury ignited within me when I opened the link to the sham subscription-based porn page - welcoming duped members to my "uncensored life".
With two of my pictures taken from my private Instagram on public display, the warped page tried to entice followers with the promise of "naked and erotic" photos and videos.
The goal, of course, was to get hold of card information to rinse the accounts of unsuspecting subscribers.
Every word I scanned on the phony page made the lump in my throat a little bigger.
To not only have my identity stolen but my body commodified as bait to try and dupe my followers churned my stomach.
"I will be more accessible and share more of myself," the page read.
"Subscribe and enjoy my uncensored photos and videos.
"Get free access to all my photos and videos completely naked and erotic.
"And get 1 month of free access if you subscribe today.
"What are you waiting for?"
Ironically, the page warned users not to "download, share or redistribute any content" or face legal action - likely to seem more authentic.
In the UK, laws around impersonating someone online are complex.
While simply making a fake profile with someone else's name or pictures might not always be illegal, using that profile to commit fraud, harass someone or cause harm could lead to criminal charges.
Sharing or threatening to share private or sexual images and videos without a person's consent, often referred to as revenge porn, is also illegal.
To bring about charges, reporting is crucial, but perpetrators can be hard to trace, often being located in other countries, and gathering evidence can also be challenging - meaning not all cases will lead to prosecutions.
'Red mist'
Unsure of what to do next, I found my initial anger quickly turned to panic as my mind whirred with who might be seeing these profiles - family, friends, colleagues.
I have never and will never share intimate photos of myself, and I certainly didn't want those close to me believing otherwise.
What is more worrying in this day and age is the scammers' ability to weaponise AI to create fake - yet extremely convincing - images mimicking their victim.
Luckily for me, my ordeal didn't sink to those depths as it predated the boom of AI into mainstream in 2023.
Knowing the quickest way to try to get the fake Instagram profile and the imitation adult content page removed was to go straight to them, it became my overriding priority.
But I hit an immediate pitfall.
Naturally, the conniving scammer had blocked my actual Instagram account to stop me from being able to report the bogus page.
Outraged followers assured me they had reported the account - but I needed all the help I could get.
I shared a plea on my story requesting as many people as possible to flag the account impersonating me.
Thankfully, friends, family and acquaintances alike were receptive - bar a few crude remarks.
It took a couple of agonising days for both the Instagram account and Wix page to be removed - by which point I'd grown increasingly frustrated at explaining "no, that's not me and yes, please report it"
Katie Davis
Contacting Instagram myself to appeal for the page to be removed as quickly as possible was trickier, given I had no access to the account.
A red mist hung over me as I filled out a form - sending over an image of my ID and a photo of it next to my face to prove it was me.
I also reached out to PocketStars, the OnlyFans-style site that the imposter account posing as me appeared to be on.
But they pointed out what I hadn't noticed: the faux page was on a Wix site - a website-building platform that allows users to create free domains - rather than the platform presented.
A sympathetic member of their support team told me via email: "Someone has created a custom site that is intended to impersonate the visuals of PocketStars, presumably with the goal of scamming potential fans into providing their credit card details."
The worker also notified Wix on my behalf - and urged me to do the same.
It took a couple of agonising days for both the Instagram account and Wix page to be removed - by which point I'd grown increasingly frustrated at explaining "no, that's not me and yes, please report it".
Who did this?
What still taunts me four years later is the question of who did this.
My account was private, and it repulses me to think one of my own followers could have been behind such a cruel and intrusive scam.
It begs the question - should Instagram implement stricter rules to create accounts?
A simple ID verification would do the trick.
A spokesman from Meta, the parent company of Instagram, told The Sun they are "constantly looking for ways to improve our detection and enforcement".
They added: "This is an adversarial space - bad actors are constantly changing the ways in which they violate our impersonation policies and evade the enforcement of this policy.
"We welcome all feedback that can help us improve in detecting and removing impostor accounts."
In a world where social media appears inescapable, it's high time more is done to protect users from needless and harmful impersonation.