Instagram influencer from Jabalpur loses ₹50 lakh to cyber extortion racket

The victim, Azim Ahmed (28), a software engineer-turned-digital entrepreneur, has filed a complaint with the Jabalpur Cyber Cell, which has launched an investigation into the scam.

Ahmed, who runs 96 Instagram pages with a combined following of 57 million users, told police that he was targeted by fraudsters posing as copyright enforcers and social media mediators.

“For almost a year, I have been receiving fake copyright strikes and threats. They claim my posts are their content and say if I don’t pay, my accounts will be deleted,” Ahmed told NDTV.

Fearing that his accounts, also his primary source of income, could be permanently suspended, Ahmed said he began paying the extortionists, making several transfers that eventually added up to ₹50 lakh.

“The threats escalated to phone calls and fake ‘Instagram strike’ emails. A caller from Pune demanded ₹25,000 to ₹30,000 to remove fake strikes,” he said.

Confirming the case, Jabalpur Cyber Cell in-charge Neeraj Negi said this was the first reported instance in the city of cybercriminals extorting influencers using fake copyright and content strikes.

“This is a new-age cybercrime trend. Fraudsters are exploiting Instagram’s automated content systems. Once a user receives multiple fake strikes, their account faces suspension,” Negi explained.

He added that the cyber cell has reached out to Instagram’s internal security team to trace how these fake bans were being triggered and identify the perpetrators.

Ahmed’s online journey began in 2017, when he created his first Instagram page.

His follower base skyrocketed during the COVID-19 lockdown, leading him to launch a digital marketing company called Whoopy Digital with a group of friends.

What started as a success story in the creator economy, however, has now turned into a cautionary tale about the growing menace of cyber extortion targeting influencers.