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Benjamin Strick Profile picture
@BenDoBrown
Oct 6, 2018 • 11 tweets • 12 min read • Read on X
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This #blockchain case is an #Instagram sock account masked as an investor. Using reverse-image search I found that the account (claims to be American) is the clone of a TV presenter's account. The scam has pulled USD$24,000+ #bitcoin @BitcoinWhosWho medium.com/@benjamindbrow… Image
2/ A timely response from @instagram's review has stated that this fake account, currently scamming users, does "not violate Community Guidelines" for "impersonation". Since reporting the #bitcoin scam, which uses photos from someone else's account, the sock has blocked me. Image
3/ Well @instagram, allow me to retort. Community guidelines state: "Share only photos and videos that you’ve taken or have the right to share". As you can see here, the photos are pulled from an authentic user, and reuploaded to the scam #sock account. ImageImage
4/ @instagram's policies state a user must: "Foster meaningful and genuine interactions."
This scam account is pulling videos from a user's account and reuploading them as their own stories. These are uploaded with videos of #Crypto investment charts - an incentive to the scam. ImageImage
5/ @instagram's policies state an account must "Follow the law". Last week someone flagged this account to me after they were #scammed USD$800. Clearly, a sockpuppet using someone else's photos and soliciting a '#cryptocurrency investment' scam is fraud. Image
6/ @instagram has a policy against #impersonation, stating: "You can't impersonate others or provide inaccurate information".
This #bitcoin scam account is pretending to be in Florida, but is from the account of a TV presenter in #Australia. ImageImage
7/ While the account has been determined by @instagram to be within community guidelines, here is evidence of how the scam operates. ImageImageImageImage
8/ The #sockpuppet has provided their bitcoin address (allegedly belonging to eliteoptionstrade.com) and asks to register with that site. The sock declares that they are a #cryptocurrency trader under that site. @BitcoinWhosWho - please list this address. Image
9/ The #Bitcoin address the sock scam provided is 36RWQFRCXVB1NS7zAJ5HsQS2H8wDuQFNEU - It links to CbwP which then goes onto 85oC (a bitcoin tumbler used to anonymise transactions). The Bitcoin address has received more than USD $24,000.
blockchain.com/btc/address/36… ImageImage
I have spoken with the real owner of these photos - they have reported this #bitcoin #fraud account to @instagram for months now and nothing has happened. Since writing this, the #scam sock has changed its username and privacy settings: Report 👉 instagram.com/sibrina_h10/ Image
@ErinSaltman - the person who is having photos stolen off their Instagram and used to create a fake Instagram crypto scam profile is still messaging asking for help. Could you please point this in direction of someone that can contact me with the @instagram user’s address?

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More from @BenDoBrown

Benjamin Strick Profile picture
Oct 10
Today is #WorldMentalHealthDay. As digital investigators we're often not experiencing what we see online, in real life, but it can still affect many.

So to keep doing the important documentation and investigative work online, here's a few practical steps you can take.👇
1. When sharing graphic content with colleagues and friends, remove those previews and give a little graphic warning indicator. There's always a little 'X' in the corner to remove preview. Image
2. Consider changing the settings on your social media platforms so you're not absorbing horrific content while doomscrolling. You don't have to filter it out, but at least stop the autoplay. Image
Read 10 tweets
Benjamin Strick Profile picture
Sep 18
I was recently on a flight across Australia when I spotted this massive figure on the ground. It led me on a digital journey to find out what it was, how it got there and who made it.

I'm going to explain a bit more about what it is in this thread, and how I found out. 👇🧵
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Without internet on the plane, I made a screenshot on my phone of the location (yes it was on flight mode) and later used flight tracking to pinpoint exactly where I saw it.

Using @flightradar24, I traced the path my plane took and found the spot!
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Next stop: @googleearth 🗺️

I zoomed into the area and there it was — this huge humanoid figure etched in the Australian outback. Measuring 2.7km tall and covering an area of more than 1.7 square kilometres, it's a sight to behold.

Here's the location: -29.527084, 137.465400
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Read 8 tweets
Benjamin Strick Profile picture
Sep 2
Despite our reporting last week on the fake network of pro-Trump MAGA accounts, there appears to be many more accounts actively posting the exact same content. This one, @brenda_otto_ with 18k+ followers, is stealing photos from an Australian Instagram model in Queensland.

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Here's another fake MAGA account, @Tracy_Miller044, stealing images from a fashion blogger (a popular one too).

@Tracy_Miller044 - if you want to reach out and talk about your work, why you're running these campaigns etc, I'm open.
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Here is @Sarah_Hickey__

Sarah is stealing the photos of a Czech Instagram influencer to create a persona claiming to be a MAGA republican conservative with 40k+ followers and a blue tick (which means it's apparently not misleading).

@Safety @GlobalAffairs @elonmusk
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Read 4 tweets
Benjamin Strick Profile picture
Aug 28
A network of fake accounts are posing as young American women, posting pro-Trump content and disinformation, but they’re hiding behind, and manipulating, the images of European fashion influencers.

Our latest investigation at @Cen4infoRes. Details in this thread 🧵👇 Image
Our full analysis can be seen at @Cen4infoRes here: . We also collaborated with @CNN to dig out the human stories behind those who had their photos stolen

Let's look at the some details below 👇info-res.org/post/unmasking…
edition.cnn.com/2024/08/28/eur…
One of the accounts is Eva. She lives in the US, and likes hanging out at the beach and posting to her 5000+ followers on X. Eva posts strong opinions against LGBTQ people and the US Democratic party and is a loyal supporter of former US president Donald Trump. Image
Read 21 tweets
Benjamin Strick Profile picture
Jul 9
Today US DoJ announced seizure of two domains and the search of 968 accounts on X used in a "Russian-government backed campaign" to spread disinformation.

Affidavit includes all of the accounts requested from X 👇

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The DoJ announcement said the campaign used elements of AI to create fictitious social media profiles purporting to belong to individuals in the United States, which the operators then used to promote messages in support of Russian government objectives. justice.gov/opa/pr/justice…
The affidavit for the accounts on X shows that all of the accounts were registered to email addresses that were either using the domain 'otanmail' or 'mlrtr' justice.gov/d9/2024-07/aff…
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Read 9 tweets
Benjamin Strick Profile picture
Jun 13
A new coordinated network of fake accounts pretending to be ‘Real Sikhs’ is targeting activists, stoking tensions and promoting Indian Govt narratives.

Who are they, what do they post, and how do they spread their campaign? Report:
Let's take a look 👇🧵 info-res.org/post/return-of…
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Before we start, it's important to note that this is not the first time we have exposed a network like this at @Cen4infoRes. In Nov 2021 we identified a similar network. But in the months after the accounts were removed, new accounts popped up.
In this new network, what we do know is the network of fake accounts posts content to undermine Sikh activists, stoke cultural tensions and promote Indian government narratives. But who are the accounts, and how are they posting so that we can catch future attempts?
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Read 15 tweets

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