'Everything was lost': Manitoba business owner victim of Instagram hack
A Winnipeg business owner is reminding others to be careful online after her social media accounts were hacked over the weekend.
Amie Hart runs two businesses; Set The Bar, a business that provides snack bars to events such as weddings, and a wedding planning business that she recently started. Both of her companies use Instagram heavily.
On Saturday, both of her accounts were accessed by a hacker, and she was locked out.
“I lost years worth of work and content and followers, it was devastating,” Hart said.
Hart said she received a text message from someone claiming to be from Instagram, saying there was a copyright infringement posted on one of her accounts.
“They told me they would text me an appeal form that I could appeal this accusation and I could get my accounts back,” she said. “In the meantime, I went to my accounts, and they were both locked. So, I had stated to this person that my accounts were locked, and he said, 'Well, that shouldn't have happened. I can gain you access back to your accounts.'”
Hart said the purported Instagram employee asked for security codes sent from the site, claiming he would enter them to restore access.
“Meanwhile, he wasn’t helping me; He was hacking into my accounts and taking over,” she said.
Hart said she went back and forth with the hacker, and asked if she was being scammed, which he confirmed, asking her for $100 and Apple gift cards.
When she heard that, her heart sank, she said.
“I have eight years of work poured into that account,” Hart said. “All of my posts, all of my reels, all of my followers, everything was lost. And not only that, but this person has used my identity to reach out to all of my followers to try to scam them, as well and try to take money from them.”
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, told CTV News Winnipeg that they are in the process of restoring Hart’s access back to her account.
As of Tuesday evening, Hart said she has regained control of her accounts.
Hart says she wants others, especially business owners, to be aware so they don’t fall victim to the same thing.
“If you're following a small business account and you get a message that's out of the norm for that business, that's not their regular content, or about investing or Bitcoin or things, it just looks suspicious. But chances are that the account has been hacked. And the best thing that you can do to protect yourself and to help this business is to report and block the account.”
In an email to CTV News, Winnipeg police spokesperson Ally Siatecki said if you receive an unsolicited email or message claiming to be from a well-known company, you need to be cautious.
Siatecki said don't click on any links or download any attachments, verify the sender’s email address, check for spelling and grammar errors, not provide personal information and report the message.
-With files from CTV's Jon Hendricks
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Air quality advisories issued in 5 provinces, 1 territory
Air quality advisories are in effect across Western Canada as smoky conditions plague some areas, according to the latest forecasts. Here's where.
'Oh my God, you're my brother': Man in his 70s discovers 6 unknown siblings
After receiving a DNA kit one Christmas from his son-in-law, Hugh McCormick soon discovered that he had six unknown siblings, with whom he shared the same birth parents.
No refund for travellers who cancelled flight already scrapped by airline: regulator
Four years on, the controversy over whether airlines owed refunds to passengers after cancelling hundreds of thousands of flights during the pandemic continues to simmer, aggravated by a sluggish, opaque complaints process.
Just how bad are ultraprocessed foods? Here are 5 things to know
Many foods fall under the category of ultraprocessed foods, depending on their exact ingredients. This type of food has been studied a lot lately, and the results aren’t great.
'My family doctor just fired me': Ontario patients frustrated with de-rostering
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
Rates of cancer declining in Canada, but more work needed to save lives: projections
A new study projecting declining rates of cancer cases and deaths in Canada demonstrates the success of prevention and early detection programs, but also highlights areas where more work is needed to save and prolong lives, researchers say.
DEVELOPING Cohen expected to take the stand as testimony in Trump hush money case enters 4th week
The star prosecution witness in Donald Trump's hush money trial is set to take the stand Monday with testimony that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president.
India's mammoth election is more than halfway done as millions begin voting in fourth round
Millions of Indians across 96 constituencies began casting their ballots on Monday as the country's gigantic, six-week-long election edges past its halfway mark. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third straight term with an eye on winning a supermajority in Parliament.
Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.