The action of establishing a deceptive social media profile on the Instagram platform entails the fabrication of an account that misrepresents the identity or intentions of the user. This process involves providing inaccurate personal details or utilizing someone else’s information to register and operate an account. For instance, an individual might construct an online persona with a false name and profile picture to observe content anonymously or engage in activities under a concealed identity.
The capacity to generate such profiles can be employed for various reasons, ranging from legitimate purposes such as market research and brand protection to less justifiable actions including online harassment, spreading misinformation, or evading platform restrictions. Historically, the ease of creating accounts online, coupled with limited verification processes, has made it relatively simple to establish these types of profiles. The advent of social media bots and automated tools has further streamlined this process, contributing to the proliferation of deceptive accounts.