The number of Instagram scams has soared by 155% in the past year – according to analysis from Lloyds Bank.
Fraudsters are increasingly turning to the social media platform in a bid to con users out of their hard-earned cash. This is contrasted with a fall in these types of scams carried out via Facebook and Snapchat, suggesting Instagram may be a new battleground for the organised criminal gangs who perpetrate fraud, on a mass scale, the banking giant said.
On average, victims of the scams lost around £336 each, Lloyds said. The average age of those most likely to fall victim to a scam was 18 to 24.
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Michelle (not her real name) was contacted on Instagram by someone who said they worked at her local church. The message said that the church was trying to set up a charity abroad and needed some money to help with the set up.
Michelle believed that the message was genuine as a link was provided to a page which had photos of people who worked at her church on it. She was asked to send money to the current account of someone she was told was the representative of the charity in the UK.
Michelle made three payments, totalling £500, before the church was alerted to the scam and got in touch with parishioners to let them know. Instagram lists 13 things its users should watch out for:
- People asking you for money who you don’t know in person
- People asking you to send them…
