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New nationwide 'fake porn' scam targeting social media users Woman in her 20s holding a mobile phone to the camera with a profile page on the screen. She does not look impressed. Jessica Laurie woke up to find messages from friends asking if she had made new social profiles.(ABC News: Elizabeth Pickering) Authorities are warning of a new scam targeting social media users across the country, in which their images and information are being stolen and used to promote fake porn sites. Key points: A new scam targeting social media users is stealing images and personal details to promote fake porn sites Experts say the scam is nationwide and social media sites need to do more to protect users Police say victims should report scam online and to local stations Cyber security experts say they receive daily calls from victims, with the content often difficult to remove and the criminals almost never caught. Victims say more needs to be done by social media platforms to better protect their users. 'I instantly felt sick' Earlier this year, Queensland woman Jessica Laurie, 22, was horrified to discover her Instagram page had been cloned. The fake account had followed her friends and family and was promoting a website promising explicit content for a fee. "This account had my name, photos, workplace, age, study history, everything on it - it was basically an exact replica of mine," she said. "My friends had just said, 'Wow, okay, you've either just gotten really wild overnight, or this has happened and your information has been stolen'. "It had stories on it that were very graphic, images with [genitals] blotted out, like soft porn. "I just instantly felt sick, it was just a horrible feeling, so invasive. "I just thought can I get this taken down? I knew I'd seen it happen to a lot of other people before me." A woman stands at a kitchen counter with dental studies books open in front of her. Stacy Maddin moved to Adelaide to study dentistry and is concerned the fraudulent profiles could impact on her future career.(ABC News: Stephen Opie) Fears for career, reputation In South Australia, dentistry student Stacy Maddin faced a similar ordeal when a fake account using her details had already attracted more than 150 followers before it came to her attention. "I received an inbox from one of my close guy friends and he sent me a screenshot of this Instagram account and it was just all my photos," she said. "But I was like, 'That isn't actually me, please report it'. "God knows how long it had already been up for." The profile also shared a link to a fake website, using Ms Maddin's images and name, that promised exclusive adult-only content for those who paid. Having moved to Adelaide to follow her career ambitions, Ms Maddin said she feared the fraudulent accounts could affect her future employment opportunities. "I'm studying in the healthcare industry and one of my major concerns was just being able to find a job after this, if it was to escalate," she said. "And if my family members were to see it, or just everyone judging and thinking that it actually is me, when it wasn't." 'It's prolific' At first look, the fake social media accounts appear to navigate to a profile from an OnlyFans website, a platform well known among content creators who share adult-only photos, videos and amateur porn. But instead, scammers have created fake websites imitating the recognised platform, in the hope of luring unsuspecting viewers and harvesting their credit card details. Professor David Lacey, managing director of identity and cyber-support service IDCare, said it was a common tactic among fraudsters and the scam was targeting victims nationwide. "In terms of setting up fake social media accounts every hour of the day, it's that prolific," he said. "Scammers are seeing that social media is a way to get access to the masses and convince them to do things that they otherwise wouldn't. "One common methodology is baiting or having an image there that people want to click on, then take them to a website that might be malicious so that they can harvest their information." Content difficult to take down While Ms Laurie was able to have the fake account and website about her removed, she said the process was arduous and required the help of her family and friends. Ms Maddin did the same and said she reported the accounts for weeks on end, but it took more than four months before they were eventually taken down. "Just every week or month, there would be someone come across the page ... It just got to the point where I kind of lost hope because it was still up and all these people had said they reported it," she said. According to Professor Lacey, social media and online platforms are not doing enough to protect users, or responding fast enough when reports are made. A man stands in front of a screen with a map of the world, his arms are crossed and he looks stern David Lacey from IDCare says he is contacted daily by victims who have had their images and information stolen and used fraudulently by scammers.(ABC News: Tara Cassidy) "It's not uncommon for us to have people say that they've actually reported abuse over 100 times, and are still waiting for action to be taken," he said. "So it's pretty frustrating for consumers. Many Australians are being impacted by it and I think there's a question to ask the social media companies as to how they can better improve." When contacted by the ABC, the head of Instagram's Public Policy, Philip Chu, said: "We have a specialised team dedicated to detecting and blocking impersonation scams - which are expressly prohibited by our Community Guidelines. Our rules do not allow people to create accounts for the purpose of misleading others, nor do we allow pornographic content on Instagram. We remove accounts which violate our rules when we find them or when they are reported to us." Help is available According to New South Wales Cybercrime Commander, Detective Superintendent Matthew Craft, such scams were heavily under-reported, making it difficult for authorities to assist. He said the fake porn site scam appeared to be a nationwide problem and he urged victims to contact their local police station as well as report the matter online. "The unauthorised use of somebody's personal identification information and image is a criminal offence. It's punishable by imprisonment," he said. A police officer stands in front of a sign saying 'NSW Police Force'. He is not smiling NSW Cybercrime Commander Detective Superintendent Matt Craft says the scam is targeting victims nationwide.(ABC News: Ross Byrne) "We need to encourage people to come forward and don't just assume that the police aren't able to assist you - we are able to take steps to try and remedy the situation and help you through what is a very difficult time in your life. "Cybercrime is borderless, offenders and victims can reside all over the globe and outside of your individual jurisdictions, so we aren't able to arrest our way out of this problem on our own." Professor Lacey said while police and support services could assist in having the websites and accounts removed, often offenders would not be caught. "Ninety-nine per cent of cybercrime is unsolved, so in terms of deterrence for the perpetrator, there's little deterrence at the moment," he said. "They pretty much know they won't be caught, so our only solution at the moment is really just trying to take these things offline and wait for the next thing to pop up and then try and take that offline, which is not a strategical long-term outcome that we want as a community." Superintendent Craft encouraged social media users to take extra measures to protect their accounts, with public profiles often easy targets. "The message is that you need to be aware of what you post and you need to review your security settings on all your accounts to make sure that you have control on who has access to your pages," he said. "But if you are a victim, you need to make appropriate contact with the host of that particular website, in my view, in writing, and request that that content is taken down. "And in circumstances where a criminal offence has been committed, I would encourage you to contact law enforcement in your jurisdiction and report the matter."

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