Business
Scammers demand ransoms from Instagram users over fake copyright claims
Users say they are losing money or risk having their accounts suspended because Meta struggles to identify scammers.
BBC Business•
Instagram creators say they have lost thousands of pounds after their accounts were suspended or taken down due to fake copyright claims.
Extorters have filed bogus claims to the Meta-owned social media platform, then asked for ransoms to withdraw them - knowing repeated claims can lead to account bans.
One Instagram user, who has 1.5 million followers, told the BBC he paid a scammer $50 (£37) to get his account back, claiming Meta's appeal process would take weeks, which had previously cost him thousands in lost income.
"There's no investigation into abuse, or system detection [from Meta] that it could be abuse," he said.