The Insta drug deal
Forget ‘Silk Road’, the newest way of selling and buying drugs is through the widely publicised photo/video sharing site, Instagram. The web’s favourite illegal drug market where buyers are anonymous finds itself competing with the very public, selfie-central networking site. So why do drug dealers post on Instagram?
The hashtags used on Instagram, for example ‘#drugsforsale’ which has 408 photos captioned, attracts thousands of people to look at pictures and profiles. The more popular the hashtag, the more people will look at, ‘like’ or even comment on the photo. If searched #drugsforsale this profile is shown displaying explicit pictures of different drugs.
These are the comments for this photograph, many people are asking for prices and where the dealer will send the drugs to. This user’s bio starts with “If anyone wants to request a certain pill hit me up!” By writing this, anyone that views his profile will know he sells and are likely to private message him for more information.
Users ignore the social media site’s rules "People can't buy things on Instagram, we are simply a place where people share photos and videos." Instagram, owned by Facebook, have blocked certain hashtags associated with the selling and buying of drugs but there is not much they can do. Not every photo hashtagged with ‘drugs’ will be a picture of a drug substance, and there are many more abbreviations that will be labelled, this making it almost impossible to block them all. Police state it is classed as a low priority crime and with so many people online it would be difficult to track them all down.
A popular drug selling Instagram profile with 2593 followers, but don’t be fooled. ‘Acidelivered’ has been uncovered as a fake selling profile, copying pictures from ‘ISdelivered’. The fake profiles send unsafe drugs to buyers which can potentially kill them.
The account provides an email address to get in touch, looking through the profile it is obvious that people are very happy with the drugs and class them as ‘safe’. The payments are often taken through MoneyPak which is a system that uses an untraceable, prepaid credit card. This account has left an email address but most dealers use Kik or Whatsapp to finish the sale and remain anonymous off of Instagram.
Illegal activities on social media sites are inevitable; the large audience range makes it an opportunity to take. Users of Instagram are mainly aged 18-34, which is also the main age range for use of recreational drugs. These are often used for nights out and can be obtained by dealers in clubs; the most popular U.S club scene drug is now 2CI. This is a new drug which mimics the effects of ecstasy and LSD, they are not available in the UK yet so many social media dealers from the U.S are sending them to the UK buyers.
Although certain hashtags are now banned, there will be no stopping the controversial use of recreational drugs over social media sites. How long before Twitter starts dealing? It is apparent these illegal activities cannot be avoided and will undoubtedly never end.
What do you think?
Alex is part of the marketing team at Social Media Frontiers; he also runs his own blog where you can see this article and others at Alex talks Social Media.
Contact us on Twitter, on Facebook, or leave your comments below. To find out about social media training or management why not take a look at our website for more info http://socialmediacambridge.co.uk/
The Insta drug deal
Reviewed by Alex Carson
on
Monday, November 11, 2013
Rating:
Reviewed by Alex Carson
on
Monday, November 11, 2013
Rating:
Alex Carson
Keeping you up to date on social media, digital marketing, apps, news & reviews. Social media, and digital marketing as a whole, are rapidly and constantly changing, adapting to new developments at an ever increasing rate. Just keeping up to date can be a nightmare. Our team of writers know their field, and keep an ear to the ground. We aim to keep you informed of all recent developments in the online world, and teach you a little something along the way. So whether you just want to stay connected, or gain some knowledge for yourself, the Social Songbird will keep on singing! More articles are posted every day so keep checking back! Join the discussion on Twitter - #SocialSongbird Or contact us directly - @SocialSongbird_
Entrepreneur, international speaker on Social Media Marketing. First one in the UK to write and speak in conferences about Twitter as a marketing tool. Consultant to Corporate Companies, Government Organizations, Marketing Managers and Business Owners.
Aspiring novelist with a passion for fantasy and crime thrillers. He hopes to one day drop that 'aspiring' prefix. He started as a writer and soon after he was made Executive Editor and Manager of the team at Social Songbird. A position he held for 5 years.
Adrienne is a passionate writer with experience in editing, content creation, and social media marketing. She’s a lover of animals, helping others improve their writing, and 2000s pop culture.
Musician, audio technician, professional tutor and a Cambridge university English student. Interested in writing, politics and obsessed with reading.
Recently graduated with a BA in English Literature from the University of Exeter, and he is about to study an MA in Journalism at the University of Sheffield. He is an aspiring journalist and novelist; in his free time he enjoys playing chess, listening to music and taking long walks through nature.
Lucy is an undergraduate BSc Politics and International Relations student at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Anna Coopey is a 4th year UG student in Classics at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. She is a keen writer and researcher on a number of topics, varying from Modern Greek literature to revolutionary theory.
Ellie is a recent BA English Literature graduate and aspiring publisher with a passion for writing. Her favourite pastimes include reading and shopping.