By using social networks we can be victims of many attacks that put our security and privacy at risk. There is something that is increasing lately, although it is a threat that has always been there: the bots. You may encounter bots when using platforms like Facebook or Instagram, for example. We are going to explain what you can do to protect yourself and how they can affect you. It is important that you take certain precautionary measures.
Bots on Facebook and Instagram, a major problem
There are many profiles on social networks that do not actually correspond to a real person or organization, but are bots. What does this mean? They are fake profiles created to follow other users automatically, distribute messages and content. But they can also become a hackers weapon to attack.
Cybercriminals can design social media bot with the aim of sending messages and impersonating a real person or a company. You can interact with the victim, get information or send links. The latter is what can really cause a serious security problem.
A bot can reach send fake links. For example tricking the victim through Facebook to log in from your link or to download a fraudulent file. That may have some kind of virus that hijacks the system, steals passwords, or creates problems in general that put privacy at risk.
They can use techniques such as trying to make you believe that you are looking at a good offer from Amazon, inform you of a topic that interests you or even make you believe that you have a problem with your social network account. They use all this to make you fall into the trap, add to that bot and end up clicking where you shouldn’t.
What to do to protect yourself
So what can we do to avoid bots on platforms like Facebook or Instagram? The best is the common sense. Avoid adding accounts you don’t know. Never share information with these accounts, much less do not click on links that they can send you without really knowing what it is or who may be behind it.
But it’s also a good idea protect privacy of your accounts. For example, prevent your information from being available to anyone or not expose more data than necessary. That will help to avoid bots as much as possible. Ultimately, the more information you expose online, the more likely it is to end up in the wrong hands. However, it’s important to prevent them from seeing your Facebook account if it’s private.
Another very important point is to always have a good anti virus. This will help you protect your systems and prevent the entry of malware. There are many options, both free and paid. Our advice is that you always check very carefully which one you are going to install and do not make mistakes that could affect your security. Likewise, having updated equipment will help you prevent vulnerabilities from being exploited.
In short, as you can see, Facebook and Instagram bots are a major problem. In addition, it is something that is increasing. It is essential that you are protected and do not make mistakes that could compromise your security and privacy on the network.
