Sick cyber criminals are hacking people's Facebook and Instagram to share indecent images warns Action Fraud

Action Fraud has claimed hacks of this nature are now on the rise, with reports having increased month on month since January, with more than 60 received so far.

Criminals and fraudsters can often hold people’s social media accounts or computer files ransom in exchange for cash. However, Action Fraud believes the reports of hackers using people’s social media accounts to flood the internet with indecent images ‘appears’ to have ‘no financial motivation behind’ them.

In a statement, Action Fraud said: ‘Offenders have not been limited to just indecent images, but have reportedly uploaded videos of the same nature. The majority of victims were not aware of the hacking until they received an email from the social media platform informing them that their account had been suspended.’

Now Action Fraud is warning people to be vigilant about the hacking and about what to do if they fall victim:

What you need to do

If you come across indecent images of children online, report it to the police by calling 101 or visiting your local police station. You should take with you the device you were using when you came across the images.

Do not, under any circumstances, screenshot, save or share the image. You will not be required to share the images with the police when making a report.

Use two-step verification to protect your social media accounts. This can keep people from gaining access to your accounts, even if they know your password.

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Ensure your social media accounts use a strong and different password to your other accounts. Combining three random words that each mean something to you is a great way to create a password that is easy to remember but hard to crack.

Action Fraud added: ‘Victims of account hacking should not pay any ransoms, whether it is monetary or in the form of a ‘testimony’ video.

‘If your social media account has been hacked, you should report it to Action Fraud by visiting actionfraud.police.uk, or by calling 0300 123 2040.’