Securing Your Instagram Account from Hacks 2023
To maintain privacy and ensure security on Instagram, securing your user account is one of the most important tasks after creating an Instagram account.
Instagram is an excellent platform for sharing photos and videos with friends, family, and others. Alongside all the advantages and attractions that Instagram offers, if you fail to preserve your privacy and secure your user account, this space can pose risks in terms of privacy and security.
The security and privacy issue relates to how individuals utilize social networks and their knowledge in this regard. It is important for users to educate themselves on account security as it holds significant importance. It is advisable to seek guidance from individuals who are experts in this field, rather than relying solely on the basic knowledge and tips provided by social networks to enhance account security.
Ways to prevent Instagram Account hacking
Despite their simplicity, some of the mentioned points regarding preventing Instagram account hacking can be significantly effective. However, it should be remembered that as long as we fail to observe basic security principles in using smart tools, our accounts can be vulnerable to theft and hacking. The incidents commonly referred to as “hacking” these days often occur due to the negligence of these points, and the attacker does not necessarily perform extraordinary actions. For example, an article on Jethashtag mentioned that 60% of people use the same password across multiple accounts or rely on simple passwords such as birthdays and “123456,” which are basic and easily guessable.
Fortunately, protecting an Instagram account is not a difficult task, and by considering a few simple tips, one can comfortably engage in secure activities on this social media platform. After becoming familiar with the steps of creating an Instagram account and personalizing the Instagram page, it is time to focus on the most important step, securing the account.
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Make your Instagram Account private
As emphasized in the previous article, personalizing your Instagram account is one of the important factors in maintaining security, especially for those who want to share their personal life with a specific group of acquaintances. I suggest you see the article on Instagram Tutorial: From 0 To 100 For Beginners.
If you want your Instagram account to be a personal account where only approved individuals can view its content, tap on the settings icon on your profile page, touch the “Settings” option, and tap on the “Privacy” option. Then, on the next page, enable the “Switch to Private” option by tapping on it to activate the Private Account feature.
Choose a strong password
The essential step to secure your user account is choosing a long and strong password. A strong password should include at least six digits, uppercase and lowercase English letters, and various characters (*, ! etc.) arranged non-sequential. To prevent forgetting passwords, you can use password management apps for assistance.
Note that your chosen password should differ from those used in your other accounts. This way, if someone manages to access one of your account passwords, they won’t be able to gain control over your other accounts.
To change your Instagram password, go to the Settings section, select “Security”, and choose “Password”. Enter your current password in the “Current password” box. Enter your new password in the “New password” box and repeat it in the last box. Finally, save the changes by tapping the checkmark icon in the top-right corner.
Instagram recommends that users regularly change their passwords to maintain and enhance security. This is especially important if you have received a message from Instagram requesting you to do so. Instagram conducts automated security checks and may detect compromised login information from other websites. If it detects that your password may have been compromised, Instagram will notify you.Instagram conducts automated security checks and may detect compromised login information from other websites. If it detects that your password may have been compromised, Instagram will notify you.
In such cases, changing your password will help protect your account’s security and prevent future hacking. Remember never to share your password with someone you don’t know or trust.
Adding an Email or Phone Number to Your Instagram Account:
If you have created your account with your phone number, adding an email address to your Instagram account is recommended. This will help you encounter fewer issues when logging in to the app or recovering your password. Similarly, if you have created your account using an email address, add a phone number to it.
Fill in the email and contact number sections on the Personal Information page to have better control over your Instagram account and make it easier for others to find you.
To add an email or phone number to your Instagram account, go to your profile page, tap the settings icon in the top-right corner, and select “Settings”. In the settings menu, choose the “Account” option and then access the “Personal Information” section.
You can add your phone number or email to your personal profile on this page. After adding each one, you need to enter the verification code that Instagram sends to your phone number or email to register the phone number or email on your account ultimately.
Enabling Two-Factor Authentication:
Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) is considered one of the best methods to keep your Instagram account secure. 2FA is a process in which your identity is verified when logging into your Instagram account. This feature has been made available on almost all social media platforms.
By enabling 2FA, every time you log into your Instagram account with a new device, you will receive a text message containing a verification code to enter to access your account. Therefore, if someone cannot access the sent code, they cannot hack your account. Follow the steps below to enable 2FA:
- On your profile page, tap the settings icon in the top-right corner. Select “Settings” and then “Security”.
- touch the “Two-Factor Authentication” option in the next step.
- Tap on the blue “Get Started” button to access the page to select the security method that determines how the security code will be sent to you. On this page, you will have three options:
Security code sending options
- Authentication App: In this method, one-time password codes for logging into Instagram are generated using password generator apps. Several apps have been developed for generating one-time password codes, including Google Authenticator, Duo Mobile, and Microsoft Authenticator. First, you need to install one of these apps and then add the unique code generated by Instagram, which is specific to your account, to these apps. When Instagram requests the one-time password code, refer to these apps and enter the generated code into Instagram.
- WhatsApp: With this method, you can receive one-time password codes through your WhatsApp account. Enter the phone number associated with your WhatsApp account, and after receiving the verification code, you will receive the one-time password codes as personal messages on WhatsApp.
- Text Message: This is the simplest and most common method for receiving one-time password codes. With this method, you can use any desired phone number to activate two-factor authentication. Verify your desired mobile number once, and receive one-time password codes through text messages from then on. In this method, there may be times when the message is not sent or is sent with significant delays due to operator disruptions. So, keep this in mind when choosing this method.
How to activate two-step authentication through Authentication App
By selecting this option, Instagram first checks whether you have an authentication app installed on your device. Instagram itself recommends the Google Authenticator and Duo Mobile apps for this purpose. We recommend using the Google Authenticator app for this task.
To do so, you need to download the mentioned app from the App Store or Google Play, or you can tap on the “Next” button on Instagram to be directed to the download page for this app.
two-step authentication
- After installing the app, once again, by selecting the “Next” option, you will be taken to the Google Authenticator app, and a pop-up message will appear asking you to save the unique key specific to your account in this app. It would help if you tapped “Okay” to proceed.
- If the automatic saving of the code in the app does not occur or if you are using another app that does not direct you to the code generation app, you need to do this manually. Tap the “Set Up Another Way” option below the “Next” button to do so. On the next page, a code you need to copy will be displayed.
- Next, enter the copied code in the Authenticator app under the “Enter a setup key” or “Your Key” section. In the “Account name” field, write “Instagram,” set the type of key as “Time-based,” and then select “Add” to add it.
- Then enter the generated one-time password code on the page where Instagram requests it.
- Now, the two-factor authentication system has been activated for you. Finally, Instagram will provide you with several recovery codes. These codes will allow you to access your account if you don’t have access to your mobile phone or if you happen to lose it.
It is advisable to store these codes securely, separate from your current mobile phone. Each code can only be used once. Therefore, if you have used all the codes or suspect they have been compromised, you can obtain new codes.
To obtain recovery codes:
- Go to Settings, then Security, and in the next step, tap “Two-Factor Authentication.”
- At the bottom of the page, select the “Additional methods” option and enter the Backup codes section.
Backing up two-factor authentication recovery codes.
Note that in this method, as long as two-factor authentication is active on your account, you need to have these apps installed on your phone and not delete them. The validity of the one-time password codes can be defined based on time or the number of uses.
We suggest utilizing this method for two-factor authentication as it generates codes directly from password generator applications, making them more secure. The other two methods involve the generation of one-time password codes remotely and their transmission to you via another system.