Don’t fall for the free iPhone 13 scams popping up on Instagram

If you’ve spent any time on Instagram over the last couple of months, you might have seen or been tagged in posts offering you a free iPhone 13. As you may have guessed, these are scams and you should always avoid always any links that accompany posts like this.

Ever since social media began to surge in popularity, scammers have tried to take advantage of users. And now scammers are using the popularity of the latest iPhone to try and prey on unsuspecting Instagram users.

The scam looks a lot like other phishing attempts that you find online. An unknown Instagram profile will tag a bunch of users in a flashy-looking post with a link that says something along the lines of “click here to claim your free iPhone 13.”

So according to these various #scam accounts on Instagram I have won 5 iPhone 13’s this week. My reply ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/i1qvIm46Ht

— Vicky Carruthers 🐝 (@CutieVic1981) February 10, 2022

But, of course, clicking the link won’t redirect users to a magical website that gives away $1,000 phones to people. Instead, clicking the link is exactly what these scammers want you to do. And it could lead to you compromising your personal information.

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There are plenty of legitimate sweepstakes opportunities online. But most of those options are very clear on how you enter and the exact scope of the sweepstake itself.

If you see something claiming that you are a winner but you haven’t entered any kind of sweepstake, you’re likely the target of a phishing scam.

The internet is a dangerous place, and it seems like it’s getting more and more dangerous every day. These recent iPhone 13 scams on Instagram show that these scammers are relentless.

But there’s still an age-old rule of the internet that should help keep you somewhat safe during your online browsing: Don’t click on links from people or websites that you do not trust.

Have any thoughts on this? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

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