Facebook Takes Legal Action Against Instagram Clone Network
Facebook has filed a lawsuit against Ensar Sahinturk, a Turkish national accused of operating a network of Instagram clone websites that illegally scraped user data. The legal action highlights Facebook’s ongoing efforts to combat unauthorized data harvesting and trademark infringement.
The Clone Network Operation
According to court documents, Sahinturk allegedly:
- Operated multiple domains mimicking Instagram (jolygram.com, imggram.com, finalgram.com, etc.)
- Used automation software to scrape public profiles, photos, and videos from 100,000+ Instagram accounts
- Published scraped data on his network of clone sites
The first domain, jolygram.com, has been active since August 2017, with others added later as the network expanded. Facebook described the operation as generating “voluminous traffic” though exact visitor numbers remain undisclosed.
How the Scraping Operation Worked
The defendant allegedly bypassed Instagram’s security measures by:
- Creating thousands of fake Instagram accounts (up to 9,000 daily)
- Programming these accounts to mimic legitimate user behavior
- Making automated requests appear as human activity from the official Instagram app
The clone sites enabled visitors to:
- View any public Instagram profile
- Access photos, videos, Stories, hashtags, and locations
- Download media content—a feature not offered by Instagram’s official platforms
Facebook’s Response and Legal Action
Facebook first detected the operation in November 2019 and took several countermeasures:
- Disabled approximately 30,000 fake Instagram accounts
- Sent cease-and-desist letters
- Shut down related Facebook accounts and Pages
Despite these efforts, the defendant allegedly continued operations, claiming he didn’t operate jolygram.com—only registered it under his name. Facebook estimates spending over $25,000 investigating the case and is seeking damages to be determined at trial.
Broader Context of Data Protection
This lawsuit represents Facebook’s latest legal action following the Cambridge Analytica scandal. The company has previously sued:
- Analytics firms misusing user data
- Developers selling fake “Likes”
- Various marketing intelligence operations
Notably, this marks Facebook’s first legal action specifically targeting Instagram clone websites, signaling increased vigilance in protecting its platforms against data scraping and intellectual property violations.
