Instagram Bound to Roll Out New Anti-Hacking Tool

In a bid to bring down the ever-increasing number of account hijacking, Instagram has rolled out a nifty new tool.

According to the company, the extra security layer will allow the user to instantly gained accessed into an Insta account that has been previously overtaken and locked by a hacker.

The company says that the latest countermeasure is designed to work in conjunction with the face recognition security protocol. If the tool gets passed QA, it will soon be rolled out to iOS as well.

Why would anyone want to hijack my Instagram account?

The first rule of the hackers’ club: everything can and will be hacked; there’s no doubt about it and, if there is, well, then you’re dead in the water, as the saying goes. Instagram noted that more and more accounts are getting hacked each day, and users don’t have any means of defending against them…until now.

The latest anti-hacking tool developed by the company’s in-house cybersecurity department will allow the user to regain complete access to the account even when the hacker replaced all credentials.

The company noted that all attacks follow a specific pattern: the target receives a phishing link from the hacker. Once the person opens the link, it will redirect him or her to a page where all credentials become visible.

At this point, the hacker only needs to use the name and password to log into the account. And, from there, things are easy – the hacker changes the passkey, thus blocking the user from accessing his or her account (yes, I know it sounds stupidly simple, but, apparently, it works like a charm).

Well, from now on, we needn’t worry about this exploitation. Why? Because an easy bug calls for an easy fix.

So, to help you regain control of your account, you will need to input the email address and\or phone number associated with the account (the very same you had to supply during the signing up process). After that, you will receive a six-digit code which you will be required to enter in order to access your Insta account.

Apparently, this safeguard can circumvent common account-blocking tactics such as replaced credentials. If your account did indeed get hacked and it’s not just another case of “I was too drunk when I created my Insta account, and I forgot my password,” the company will take additional steps to prevent any future hijacking attempts.

When asked if this feature will replace the facial recognition security layer, the company said that it wasn’t meant to be a replacement.

For those who don’t have an Insta account, here’s how the system works – in order to confirm that you’re human, Insta asks you to take a pic of yourself doing something like waving your hand or making a peace sign. The picture is then verified by human moderators who, in turn, decide if the account’s legit or fake.

Wrap-up

Instagram’s extra layer of security will severely cut back on successful hijackings. Question is how long before the hackers manage to find a way around this safeguard?

So, what are your thoughts on Insta’s latest toy? Head to the comments section and let me know.

About Daniel Sadler

Old-school PC gamer, poetry buff, cat lover, tech wiz. His writing career began almost two decades ago when he modestly acknowledged that hindsight or, lack thereof, can compromise security. He enjoys spending quality time with his friends and family. Most of his friends refer to Daniel as a "man of a few words, but, man, what words!" His interests include cybersecurity, IT, blogging, and, of course, everything related to technology.

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