Meta has taken legal action against an alleged scammer accused of running a large-scale extortion racket, banning and unbanning Instagram accounts for a hefty price. The lawsuit, filed this week, targets Idriss Qibaa, the operator behind the notorious “Unlocked 4 Life” scheme, which was previously detailed in a criminal complaint filed by prosecutors.
Qibaa openly admitted to his illicit activities during an appearance on Adam22’s No Jumper podcast in January 2024. Calling himself a “professional when it comes to banning and unbanning Instagram accounts,” he claimed to have over 200 clients paying him monthly to keep their accounts secure. He even bragged about raking in over $600,000 per month through this operation. During the interview, Adam22 noted that high-profile individuals have been victims of similar schemes, to which Qibaa casually responded that they were “getting extorted.”
Scammer Allegedly Earned $600,000 Monthly By Holding Instagram Accounts Hostage
The indictment against Qibaa, issued by a federal grand jury in Nevada in August 2024, alleges that his operations went far beyond just social media manipulation. According to court documents, his tactics included threats of violence, harassment, and intimidation. Victims who refused to comply reportedly received hundreds—if not thousands—of threatening messages, racial slurs, and even images of beaten individuals as warnings. In one particularly disturbing instance, Qibaa allegedly threatened to release a victim’s Social Security number unless she paid him $20,000.
Meta responded to the allegations with a strong statement: “We will consider all enforcement and legal options to protect people on our platforms. These particular abuses target users and violate our policies, and we are committed to countering these malicious activities.”
The Full Scope of the Alleged Scheme
Meta’s lawsuit accuses Qibaa of offering a range of unauthorized services, including:
- The ability to disable Instagram accounts at will
- Illicit reinstatement of accounts previously banned for violating Meta’s policies
- Fake engagement services to artificially inflate follower counts
Moreover, Meta claims that Qibaa wasn’t limiting his extortion racket to Instagram alone. According to the complaint, he ran similar operations on X (formerly Twitter), YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, and Telegram.
Meta initially tried to shut Qibaa down in February 2024 by sending him a cease-and-desist letter, revoking his access to Facebook and Instagram, and disabling his accounts. However, the lawsuit alleges that he simply created new accounts to evade these restrictions and continued business as usual.
What This Means for the Underground Account Market
For those involved in the buying, selling, or recovering of accounts, this case sets a major precedent. Platforms like Instagram and others are cracking down harder than ever on unauthorized services. SWAPD members should be especially wary of anyone claiming they can “guarantee” account recoveries or bans for a fee—Meta is watching, and lawsuits like this show they are willing to go after individuals who manipulate their systems.
If you have any insights into similar schemes or know of other cases of social media extortion, feel free to discuss them on SWAPD’s forums—while keeping within the platform’s rules, of course.
