Is Instagram one of your main sources of income as an influencer?
Then getting Instagram influencer insurance is a surefire way to protect your influencer business. Yes, if you make money as an influencer through sponsorships, affiliate marketing, etc., you are your own brand and business!
Think about it– one of the best practices of owning your own business, whether it’s running your own restaurant or leading a tech start-up, is to get insurance. With insurance, businesses better manage any financial risks they may face in the future.
Your influencer business on Instagram does and should not be an exception to this best practice, especially if it’s one of the main income sources of your influencer business.
In this post, you’ll learn about Instagram influencer insurance, why you need it, personal stories from those who got hacked, best practices on how to protect your Instagram from hackers and of course which Instagram insurance to get.
This post is written in partnership with Notch, the first insurance for digital assets. Read about our partnerships here.
What is Instagram influencer insurance?
Instagram influencer insurance is insurance for influencers who use Instagram as a way to make money with their business.
A good Instagram insurance will monitor your account for suspicious activity, educate you about hacking trends and tactics, and most importantly, protect you from any financial losses if your account gets hacked.
Why You Need Influencer Insurance
If Instagram is the main way that you make money as an influencer, then you need insurance to protect your main revenue stream.
Say you were to get locked out of your Instagram account because it was hacked, then that could prevent you from:
- pitching to brands,
- connecting with your community,
- participating in sponsorships
- and posting to your account to build your followers.
Essentially, getting hacked can be highly detrimental to your influencer business and cause serious losses.
With influencer insurance, financial risks would be greatly mitigated because if your account were to be hacked, a good insurance would:
- pay you $50-1,100 a day according to your policy size while your Instagram account is out of service
- and work 24/7 around the clock for you to get your account back so you don’t have to struggle to do it on your own.
And if you think your account can’t get hacked simply because you have 2-factor authentication on, think again…
The Reality of Not Getting Insurance as an Instagram Influencer
As mentioned above, the risks of not getting insurance as an Instagram influencer can include a wide range of issues even if you have 2-factor authentication on! You won’t be able to connect with your audience, post content and work with brands meaning your main source of income will be very limited.
Not to mention the emotional and financial stress of not being able to log in to your account and losing money as you try to fix the hack issue on your own.
Here are some personal stories from influencers who got hacked:
@flipflopwanderers, a travel account with 109,000 followers
@flipflopwanderers had their account hacked at over 50,000 followers.
At this point, their travel content on Instagram was a full time job and source of income but the hacker took their account, changed the email and removed their photos.
Not only did they lose their travel business income but also their community, which they worked hard to create, and their photos and memories.
@wenjiajessica, a travel account with 166,000 followers
@wenjiajessica, a travel account with 166,000 followers, still got hacked even with 2-factor authentication on. This happened when a hacker hacked her friend’s account first then pretended to be her friend and used that as an advantage to get secure information from her.
The hacker tried holding her account for ransom so Jessica got in touch with Instagram to get her account back but was stuck in an endless loop with support until she gave up and deemed her account that she built up for 6 years lost.
This goes to show that even with 2-factor authentication, you may want extra protection if Instagram is your main source of income.
How to Protect Your Instagram from Hackers
There are multiple ways to protect your Instagram from hackers, which includes the basics that Instagram shares, tips for outside the app and a more secure method for your business as an influencer.
Enable two-factor authentication
If you enable two-factor authentication, when you login to your Instagram account on a device that’s not recognized by Instagram, you will get a code to enter to login in.
You can receive login codes with an authentication app (recommended) or via text message.
Update your phone number and email
Since you can receive login codes through a text message, it’s a good idea to update your phone number anytime you get a new phone.
Also, keep your email up to date for additional Instagram security. If you receive an email from Instagram and are not sure if it’s actually from them or not, you can check in the app to see if the email came from Instagram or a hacker.
Enable login requests
Another way to log in securely is by enabling login requests so if a new device tries to log in, Instagram will share this with you. You can then approve or deny it.
Here’s how to do enable login requests on Instagram:
- On your Instagram profile, tap the Three Bars in the top right.
- Tap Settings.
- Tap Security.
- Tap Two-factor authentication.
- Tap Additional methods.
- Tap Login requests to turn it on or off. Toggled right to the color blue is on!
Choose a secure password
If your password is too simple, a hacker can figure it out more easily. Choose a secure and complex password.
Make sure your email account is secure
Since your email account is connected to your Instagram, make sure you also have a solid password and 2-factor authentication on for your email account.
Know Instagram’s best practices
By learning some of Instagram’s key best practices, you will be less likely to fall into suspicious Instagram hacking schemes.
For example, Instagram will never send you a direct message about suspicious activity on your account.
Also, they will never send you an email saying that you violated a community guideline and that you need to login via their website to check out the photo that has the violation. Instead, Instagram would send you a notification and you would go through these steps.
Get Instagram Insurance
You might do all of the above and yet still be at risk of losing your business income or jeopardizing your relationships with brands as these Instagrammers did because of hackers.
That’s why you should be proactive and insure your account against hacks. As @the.style.mantra says:
“Having insurance is a great back up in case anything goes wrong. It gives you peace of mind that you are covered against losses in income in the event of hacking.”
Keep reading to find out which insurance to get.
Notch, the Best Insurance for Influencers on Instagram
Notch is the first and best insurance for influencers on Instagram because of how it protects your Instagram influencer business.
Financial Safety Net Against Loss of Instagram Income
The best perk of Notch is that it creates a financial safety net in case your account gets hacked. Instead of losing Instagram income because of lost partnerships or lack of access to your community, Notch will reimburse you with daily payments, for up to 3 months or up to the point where Notch retrieves your account.
You get between $50-1,100 a day according to your policy size while your Instagram account is out of service.
With Instagram insurance, there’s no need to worry about losing money from your Instagram business in the event of a hack.
Hack Prevention
Getting insurance for your business will protect you even before anything bad happens.
During the onboarding process, Notch specifically checks to see if your credentials have been leaked in the dark web and keeps you alerted about any suspicious activity, which could lead to a hack.
There’s no need to second guess if your account is safe.
Crisis Management
Most of the struggles that influencers have when getting their Instagram account hacked is that they have little to no support from Facebook.
With Notch insurance, you have a team of professionals working 24/7 around the clock to help you recover your account in the event of a hack.
You will not be alone in recovering your business!
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Until next time,
Sarah Chetrit