Lakshmi Manchu had a scare on Thursday afternoon as her Instagram account got hacked, with Stories being put on her account asking people to put money into a fake scheme. She put out the update on her X account, but admits feeling “panicked” because of the situation.
A bit nervous about the ordeal, Lakshmi Manchu tells us, “The app is kicking me out every time I am trying to log in. Instagram is not recognising my face.” She shares that she initially didn’t let the hack worry her much: “I said, ‘oh, well, maybe it’s time’, but I panicked when it seemed like a financial fraud. I only hope that nobody gave any money or lost any money.”
The actor informs that the concerned authorities have been involved in the matter. “I’ve already informed the cybercrime department, giving them all the details. I have had my friends share the news on their handles and I also tweeted for people to be aware. I have not been able to log into my account at all as they have changed my password. They got to my e-mail and my phone number as well. I had bells, whistles and unicorns in my password. If that is not safe, what is? It wasn’t just alphabets and numbers, it was a complicated. Now I don’t know what else to put on it,” she shares, updating that the cybercrime department has made a breakthrough in the case.
{{/usCountry}}The actor informs that the concerned authorities have been involved in the matter. “I’ve already informed the cybercrime department, giving them all the details. I have had my friends share the news on their handles and I also tweeted for people to be aware. I have not been able to log into my account at all as they have changed my password. They got to my e-mail and my phone number as well. I had bells, whistles and unicorns in my password. If that is not safe, what is? It wasn’t just alphabets and numbers, it was a complicated. Now I don’t know what else to put on it,” she shares, updating that the cybercrime department has made a breakthrough in the case.
{{/usCountry}}She informs, “They have narrowed it down that it’s coming from Nigeria. I got a message asking if I had a problem with my account and suggested to click on a help option on it. But being mindful, I blocked that sender immediately without clicking on anything. I have reported to Instagram as well and they’re trying to revive the account. So, it’s just a waiting game now.”
The actor hopes that the hackers don’t get access to her government issued documents. “We are celebrities but we’re like everybody. We do a double authentication as any business does. So, it is scary because our phones and emails carry everything. Hopefully, they don’t have the access to it all and just have the e-mail address and not what’s in there. Those things really shatter you and that was scary that they were able to penetrate through my phone number and e-mail,” she says.
A lot of work of actors today happen on social media, so is she concerned about that aspect of the ordeal? “Not for a second did I think about it. I said, ‘oh, well, maybe it’s time’. Maybe if I had a movie releasing right now, I would have been super panicking. But right now, I’m like let’s just see what this is. So, I’m not even one bit stressed about it,” she responds, adding that she sees it as a sign to go on a digital detox: “I needed it. It’s God’s way of saying, ‘ok enough’.”