account hacked

[TheEdenCollective]

I had two customers reach out to me today via DM on Instagram to tell me someone had created a fake account using my name and profile photo, using it to contact them for their phone numbers and email address in order to recieve a 50% discount on my items.

I cannot see that my shop was hacked, we have 2 factor turned on. I contacted Etsy support through chat and via callback and neither agent was able to understand the issue much less offer support. I don't know what I should do to protect myself and my customers, I did send Etsy an email, I'm sure there are other clients who will be contacted.

[audreytherese]

Did you do a reverse image search for your profile pic to try and locate the imitation shop?

[TheEdenCollective]

It's not a shop, it's an account.

[audreytherese]

I don't understand.

A buyer account? 

It sounds like you were copied, not hacked. 

Where is the account? On here or on IG?

[NanaLetha]

Maybe it's your Instagram account that was hacked and not your Etsy shop.

[TheEdenCollective]

No The message came to them via Etsy messages

[CraftyCornishMaids]

they don't have to hack anything to copy a photo or name

the phone number/e-mail scam is rife on etsy at the moment,

I doubt your account has been hacked, just bits copied

[TheEdenCollective]

How would they know who to reach out to? My buyer's info is not posted anywhere that I know of connected to sales in my shop

[JMOldeVintage]

If the scammer is contacting your buyers thru Instagram, I would be contacting Instagram customer service. 

I'm not into social media, but I'd assume you can place some sort of notice on your instagram page about possible scammers?

Not to say that you shouldn't keep an eye on your Etsy Shop. How far a scammer wants to go, or how much energy they want to use to achieve their goal probably varies. They are way too many of these folks out there. However, your name, profile picture, your buyer's user names & profiles, etc., a lot of this (on Etsy & elsewhere) is open to anyone, anywhere so we all need to be cautious. 

[TheEdenCollective]

The fake account contacted two of my previous Etsy cusomers and messaged them via Etsy messaging.. How would they have gotten their Etsy account names?

[TheEdenCollective]

Ok let me clarify: it was not my instagram that was hacked, the customers follow me on Instagram and used DMs to let me know, but sent me screen shots of the messages on Etsy. I donlt know if I was actually hacked but how would someone find my cusomer's Etsy account names to contact them? When something is purchased on Etsy it does not display the buyer info in your sold page

[BagmakerSupply]

@TheEdenCollective: "how would someone find my cusomer's Etsy account names" Reviews is one public place.

[NanaLetha]

@TheEdenCollective  the got the names from your reviews.

[TheEdenCollective]

Oh you are clever!!! I never thought of that.