Derbyshire residents warned of criminals hacking social media accounts to post child porn
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Derbyshire Police have alerted social media users to reports that accounts have been hacked and used to post indecent images of children.
They advised users to protect themselves online by using two-step verification, keeping people from gaining access to your accounts – even if they know your password.
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Hide AdAction Fraud said that reports of this nature have been increasing month on month since January 2022 – with over 60 reports nationally this year.
There appears to be no financial motivation behind these hackings, with no reports mentioning a ransom demand. Offenders have not just posted indecent images, with some allegedly uploading videos of the same nature.
The majority of victims were not aware of the hacking until they received an email from the social media platform informing them that their account had been suspended.
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Hide AdAction Fraud has issued the following advice to those who are hit by these criminals:
If you come across indecent images of children online, report it to the police by calling 101 or visiting your local police station. You should take with you the device you were using when you came across the images.
Do not, under any circumstances, screenshot, save or share the image. You will not be required to share the images with the police when making a report.
Ensure your social media accounts use a strong and different password to your other accounts. Combining 3 random words that each mean something to you is a great way to create a password that is easy to remember but hard to crack.
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Hide AdVictims of account hacking should not pay any ransoms, whether it is monetary or in the form of a ‘testimony’ video.
If your social media account has been hacked, you should report it to Action Fraud here, or by calling 0300 123 2040