- Published
Instagram creators say they have lost thousands of pounds after their accounts were suspended or taken down due to fake copyright claims.
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accounts → publish → 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.
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claims → file → 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.
"We understand this can be frustrating for those impacted, and our systems are designed to protect people from this happening in the first place," a Meta spokesperson said.
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spokesperson → have → place
"Following our review, we have restored the affected content and added additional protections to safeguard accounts against further attempts of this kind.
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we → follow → kind
However, content creators the BBC has spoken to say Meta is poor at identifying obviously spurious cases, and say its appeals process is slow to respond unless you pay a monthly fee.
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you → speak → fee
The Lost in Time History Instagram account posts historical pictures to its more than 1.5 million followers.
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account → post → followers
Its creator Olly, who did not share his last name, told the BBC he posts pictures in the public domain or where he has permission from the rights holder.
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he → share → holder
Yet he has received dozens of "obviously fake" copyright complaints so far in 2026.
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he → receive → 2026
Meta does not check the authenticity of complaints when they are made, so if someone is hit repeatedly, their account can be temporarily taken down.
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account → check → complaints
Olly says he often gets struck for multiple posts at a time, all from the same email address.
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he → say → address
He then gets contacted by the person asking to go on to the private messaging app Telegram.
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He → contact → app
"They'll demand a certain amount of money," he said - usually amounting to a few hundred dollars - to withdraw the claim.
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he → demand → claim
The BBC has seen messages from the claimants where they demand money or threaten future copyright strikes.
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they → see → strikes
This article contains content provided by Instagram.
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article → contain → Instagram
We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies.
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they → ask → cookies
You may want to read Meta’s Instagram cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting.
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You → want → policy
Olly ultimately agreed to pay an extorter $50 in cryptocurrency to restore his account, which had been temporarily taken down by Instagram.
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which → agree → Instagram
Law enforcement organisations tell extortion victims not to pay ransoms as it fuels the criminal ecosystem.
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it → tell → ecosystem
Olly said he paid as a "last resort" because it was quicker than going through Meta, which could take weeks.
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which → say → weeks
But he was hit by more copyright strikes immediately after he paid.
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he → hit → strikes
"That's the worst part," he said.
"Having to pay the person who's actively put you through all of that anguish only for it to happen straight away again.
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it → say → anguish
As a result of the number of times he has been hit by copyright claims, Olly's account was demonetised, meaning he could not earn money from Instagram for high-performing posts.
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he → hit → posts
"There's no investigation into abuse, or system detection [from Meta] that it could be abuse," he said.
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he → be → Meta
Other Instagram users have shared similar experiences.
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users → share → experiences
"Meta was not helpful throughout the entire process, forcing you to pay for support to talk, even as they claim to be here for the creator," said Abin Tom Sebastian, who is behind the Morbid Kuriosity account.
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who → force → account
Meta charges a £9.99 monthly fee to be Verified on Instagram, which gives users 24/7 access to support via a live chat.
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which → charge → chat
"I lost irrecoverable and crucial, brand contracts that unfortunately moved ahead with another creator, and no reassurance or support from Meta saying this will not happen again," Sebastian said.
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Sebastian → lose → Meta
Instagram says, external only copyright holders, or an authorised representative, can report copyright infringement, and it advises affected users to contacted rights holders directly.
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it → say → holders
After the BBC contacted Meta with examples from Olly and other account holders, Meta said it had applied additional protections to their accounts, which it said would prevent similar issues happening in the future.
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issues → contact → future
It said it fought against deceptive behaviour to scam or defraud people and businesses.
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it → say → people
Getting in touch with the extortionists
The BBC has spoken to three people who file copyright strikes against Instagram users, despite not being the copyright holders.
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who → get → users
All three appear to be based in India, or in countries nearby.
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three → appear → countries
They deny they are holding accounts to ransom - instead saying they file legitimate claims on behalf of copyright holders.
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they → deny → holders
But the BBC has seen messages from one where they ask for $900 (£668) to withdraw a strike.
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they → see → strike
They claimed this was their payment for the service, and confirmed they kept all the money.
Two others denied they made any money at all.
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they → claim → money
One said they are sent accounts to target and investigate the claim.
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they → say → claim
"If I find that they are using someone else's content, I issue copyright strikes for the benefit of everyone," they said.
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they → find → everyone
The other said they are sent accounts or posts via an account holder or another representative.
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they → say → holder
Legitimate agencies do exist which are paid to file copyright strikes on behalf of clients.
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which → exist → clients
But Olly - who has dealt with these before when he has mistakenly posted copyrighted material - says they are usually easy to deal with, and "you can easily tell the difference".
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you → deal → difference
…and 9 more, not listed.
