Social media is always changing. One day it’s Twitter, the next it’s X. Sometimes we can trust verified check marks and official accounts, but other times, unknown entities lurk beneath. As consumers, we all engage in social media monitoring, whether we’re scrolling through LinkedIn or watching Instagram reels. We often bump into brands and retailers, but sometimes, these « brands » aren’t quite what they seem.
Here, we’ll explore the world of social media monitoring and digital impersonations. With 78% of people targeted by brand impersonation scams, as per Security Magazine, forward-thinking businesses must take steps to mitigate these threats. If left unchecked, social media impersonators target IP and victimize customers. We’ll also examine malicious ads, as scammers increasingly use paid marketing to spread impersonations and spoof legitimate brands.
Which Threats Require Social Media Monitoring?
Impersonations and infringements occur across all the major social channels. With 51% of browser-based phishing attempts involving brand impersonation, companies bear the brunt of these evolving scams. Social media spoofs span from lookalike companies on LinkedIn to fraudulent accounts on Instagram. Near-identical fake profiles promote knock-off products, link to counterfeit shops, and direct users to malicious login pages.
Beyond passive scams, social media impersonators often message a brand’s existing customers and prospects. Brands without social media monitoring risk impersonation scams on platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn, and worse still, cyberattackers implement their profiles into broader phishing campaigns. Among the most concerning trends are scams on Instagram, where fake promotions and deceptive DMs trick users into losing their cash and their private information.
VIP and Executive Impersonations
No one is immune to digital impersonation—not even the world’s most powerful executives. Last year, scammers impersonated the CEO of a global advertising giant, using deepfake audio and doctored emails to trick employees into approving fraudulent transactions. This wasn’t an isolated incident. High-profile executives, celebrities, and financial leaders face relentless attacks from criminals who exploit their credibility to orchestrate scams.
These fraudsters don’t just create fake social media profiles—they weaponize AI. Deepfake videos, cloned voices, and phishing emails mimic executives with chilling accuracy. In one notorious case, criminals impersonated a hedge fund manager on LinkedIn, luring investors into a sham trading scheme. Another attack spoofed a Fortune 500 CEO’s email domain, tricking accounting teams into wiring millions to offshore accounts. Find our more about VIP and Executive scams, from CEO fraud to influencer impersonation, right here.
New and Evolving Platforms for Social Media Monitoring
New social networks like Threads and BlueSky create a dangerous gray area for brands. While companies hesitate to establish official presences, fraudsters rush in—registering lookalike accounts, impersonating customer service reps, and running fake promotions. Other evolving platforms like VK, TikTok, and Mastodon increasingly gain traction as digital behaviours change with social and geopolitical currents. Organizations must therefore enforce a robust social media monitoring strategy across all relevant avenues. Without any verification systems in place, users have no way to distinguish real brands from scams. The consequences are staggering: 44% of social media scams involve fake online stores, while another 20% lure victims into fraudulent investment schemes—all under the guise of trusted names.
But this isn’t just about protecting a brand’s reputation—it’s about shielding customers from financial harm. When criminals impersonate a company on emerging platforms, they don’t just damage trust; they steal money directly from loyal buyers. A fake « limited-time offer » on Threads, a counterfeit customer support account on BlueSky, or a fraudulent « CEO announcement » on Mastodon can trick even savvy users into handing over payment details. Organizations now face a duty to protect their clients from getting ripped off in their brand’s name, hence the need for solutions like social media monitoring and enforcement.
Malicious Ads: The Next Steps for Evolving Scams
Scammers don’t just rely on fake profiles—they also build deceptive ads to amplify their campaigns. By linking fraudulent social media accounts to counterfeit landing pages, they slip past users’ defenses. These ads appear alongside personal content, making them harder to detect. Without effective social media monitoring, businesses risk having their brand misused in paid promotions that evade detection until significant damage is done.
Fortunately, effective brand protection and risk protection platforms use datafeeds from ad libraries to detect infringements on legitimate organizations. Scanning channels like Google Ads, Bing Ads, and Meta Ads for Facebook and Instagram infringements helps unmask advertisement scams before they strike. When organizations detect and eliminate these infringements, they protect their IP from abuse and dilution, and protect innocent targets from having their data and their cash stolen by scammers. Want to check if cybercriminals are ripping you off with impersonations on paid ads? You can find out, with a free audit.
The Benefits of Proactive Social Media Monitoring
Manual monitoring is nearly impossible—scammers strike fast and disappear before most brands even notice. The FBI estimates that global losses from impersonation attacks exceed $5.3 billion, according to Forbes, so there’s a lot of money on the line. Proactive enforcement minimizes these costs, ensuring a secure social media landscape. Patrolling threat vectors allows businesses to grow their traffic, their revenue, and their following without interference. By maintaining a well-monitored presence across all relevant platforms, companies reinforce trust and credibility while shutting down impersonators before they cause harm.
Conclusions: Protecting Your Brand with a Free Audit
Cybercriminals create sociable scams across consumer platforms, putting your brand, your team, and your customers at risk. Beyond that, they promote their fake profiles with paid ads that borrow trust from social media channels to steal and deceive. If your brand isn’t actively monitoring social media and ads, you don’t even know what’s out there.
Take control today with a free social media and ad audit. Together, we’ll scan your landscape to unmask impersonators and stop them in their tracks.
