(INTERVIEW IN CATALAN)

Mariola Dinarès interviews journalist Xavier Graset after cybercriminals stole his Instagram account. This practice, which previously affected celebrities and users with many followers, is now affecting more people every day. Selva Orejón, a cybersecurity expert, explains how they do it, how to avoid falling into the trap, and, if you have already fallen victim, what to do to recover your account.

A large number of Instagram accounts are being hacked and compromised. How can they be recovered? In which cases is recovery possible and in which cases is it impossible, requiring you to start from scratch? You no longer need to be Lady Gaga or Justin Bieber for someone to fraudulently access your account, hijack it, and demand a ransom to recover it. This scourge affects businesses and many people who use it professionally, making it a serious problem. In recent weeks, several cases have emerged of people whose Instagram accounts have been hacked, from the creator of the wine, gastronomy, and lifestyle blog, Wine Taste Travel, Glòria Vallès, to the owner of the “No lea” bookstore Xavi Vidal, including the pastry chef at Bodega de Can Roca, Jordi Roca, designer Miriam Ponsa, and journalist Eva Piqué, all with hacked Instagram accounts. One of the latest to join this “select” group has been journalist Xavier Grasset.

As Selva Orejón explains “it is very important to report these incidents because ultimately we never know what cybercriminals will use the account for. Generally, in these types of attacks, which tend to be random, they only want money, but we are already encountering situations where a series of crimes are being committed from the hacked accounts.”

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