Today, Smip announces the launch of its AI-based platform that protects influencers, content creators and businesses from losing control of their virtual assets. Every day, 100k accounts are compromised. Smip protects accounts from cyber-attacks, hacking attempts, social engineering risks, platforms’ compliance violations and account blockages.
Social media accounts have become a crucial tool for their owners. For many, they are an important business tool and asset. But perhaps more importantly, they become part of their owner’s identity. “Social media users pour their heart and soul into their accounts. It is heartbreaking when they lose them, and more often than not, financial restitution can’t help owners cope with the loss of their access to their audience and to the content they created”, says Nave Ben Dror, Smip’s CEO. “Sadly, social platforms are unable to help these account holders due to the massive amount of users that get hacked, hijacked, blocked, shadow banned or are otherwise compromised”.
Loss of account access is becoming a pandemic
More than 300M businesses and social media influencers rely on their social media accounts all over the world. Smip’s research suggests that businesses and influencers are constantly targeted by social media hackers and cyber-attacks. In the past 2 years, hacking attacks targeting social media influencers and businesses have spiked by over 200%. Smip estimates that more than 25% of businesses and influencers will suffer from hacking attempts at some point.
Unfortunately for creators, platforms don’t seem to have the resources or motivation to help each of them individually. In fact, creators overwhelmingly share that in addition to being targeted by external threats, they are constantly dealing with the threat of having the platforms block access to their accounts – either by flat out blocking them, or reducing their social reach through algorithmic means or what they now call “shadow banning”, where the social media platform reduces content visibility without even letting the creator know.
Taylor Richardson shared her nightmare experience. “I worked hard to get an audience on TikTok. I grew my fan base to 326.7K, but then I lost it all when TikTok suddenly banned my account for reasons unknown, without any prior notice. My account means everything to me; it’s my only source of income, and to have it continuously banned by TikTok damages my career and my life in ways I never thought imaginable!” “I couldn’t even notify my fans. I tried every avenue possible but there was no response. I’m not big enough to get direct service from the social network”.
The damage to Taylor far exceeded just the financial loss. Taylor says that the emotional distress and pain of losing everything she worked so hard for was immeasurable. “It wasn’t about the money. This account is my life. These followers are my family”. Taylor’s story is just one of the thousands that happen every day, and throughout our short time in the industry thus far, we have already helped hundreds of influencers and businesses retrieve their accounts and solved a plethora of problems that social media platforms continue to throw their way!
