With so many accounts on social media, recognizing a fake profile can be a daunting task, especially for people who are not tech-savvy. It is estimated that 4-6% of profiles on social media are fake, and with billions of monthly active users, that translates to a staggering amount of fake accounts.
Fake accounts – most commonly bots–are being used for a multitude of reasons, none of which are good. From spreading disinformation to latching on to controversial topics in an attempt to amplify their reach and influence, individuals operating these accounts are aiming to destabilize social media conversations and manipulate public opinion.
Although the prevalence of fake accounts makes the future of online conversations seem grim, there are some telltale signs that give huge clues as to whether or not a social media profile is fake. Here are 10 tips to help identify fake profiles:
Creation Date
While genuine users typically have profiles that span several years, fake profiles are usually created just a few months, or even days, before they’re put to use.
This sudden and recent activity is used to quickly establish a social media presence and start engaging in behavior typically linked to fake accounts, such as spreading disinformation and amplifying controversial opinions on trending topics.
Anonymity/Lack of Personal Information
Fake profiles typically don’t have real names, and their profiles and social media biographies are often incomplete and lack personal information.
To be clear, this doesn’t mean all users who have an incomplete profile are fake or bots, but seeing a user that matches this criteria should set off alarm bells, as genuine users usually provide detailed and consistent information about themselves, including a proper name, biography, and personal photos.
Unreliable Profile Pictures
Fake accounts usually have a profile picture that was either stolen from an authentic account or already used by many other fake profiles. Reverse image searching is a good way to tell if an account is using a genuine photo, as threat actors are known to scrub authentic photos from Google or other websites.
In some cases, they might use AI-generated images, making it more challenging to differentiate between real and fake photos. However, there are still other signs to watch out for.
Suspicious Connections
Bots usually follow many other profiles, but are only followed by a few – often other bots. If you see an account that follows, say, a thousand people, but only has 5 people following them, there’s a good chance it’s a bot.
Inconsistent Activity
We all have habits and patterns that we follow subconsciously. We might post things on certain days or after certain events or activities, or we could just be silent on social media and use it for lurking and following other people. In contrast, bots are predictable, they might stay quiet for months and then start posting numerous times a day.
Same Topics
While bots are not identical, it often seems like the same malicious actor is behind multiple profiles, playing different roles (because that’s exactly what’s happening). They often discuss the same, often controversial, topics before moving on to the next one, like worker bees following a directive from the hive.
Low Content Quality
Bots usually post generic or unoriginal content because it is easier to automate and can be used in many different contexts. Generic content helps them avoid detection and blend in with real users.
Spamming
Fake profiles often share promotional content, repetitive and irrelevant messages, suspicious links, and unrelated hashtags.
Most regular social media users can spot these fake profiles easily because of how predictably they spam the same things, however, older people and those who do not speak English as their native language might have a harder time identifying them, potentially falling victim to their tactics.
Lack of Interaction
Most bots don’t use social media like real users do. While a real user might use social media to voice their opinion on topics related to their interests, comment on their friends’ posts, or engage in meaningful conversations, bots typically only focus on liking, sharing and retweeting.
Polarizing content
This is perhaps the biggest giveaway that a bot is hiding behind a social media profile. Since bots are created to push an agenda, their posts tend to be either extremely positive or negative toward a certain topic. This type of content is crafted to provoke strong reactions and sway public opinion, which is a telltale sign of bot behavior.
Cyabra’s Efforts Against Fake Profiles
Cyabra’s platform utilizes advanced detection tools to effectively combat fake profiles by analyzing hundreds of parameters in real-time and at scale, identifying subtle patterns and anomalies that indicate inauthentic behavior.
Using machine learning algorithms and extensive data analysis, Cyabra goes beyond common signs to spot inauthentic accounts, helping your brand maintain the integrity of social media discussions.
