Why Am I Getting Spam Bots And Fake Followers On TikTok?

There is no denying that TikTok is absolutely massive and should be considered one of the most important, if not the most important, social media platform out there. It’s incredibly popular with the youth, has a ton of engagement, and has also seen rapid growth over the past few years. Some are even calling it one of the apps that will replace Instagram.

However, when a social media platform gets large, some typical problems also start to occur: fake followers and spam bots are also populating the platform, and it seems like they’re spreading more and more.

Many people are getting likes, comments, and follows by these fake accounts and spam bots, even when they haven’t asked for it.

Just to be perfectly clear: fake followers and accounts on TikTok (or just about any other popular platform, to be fair) is a pest and should always be avoided at all costs. We’ve even compiled a list of six ways to easily spot if an account has suspicious activity from fake followers or bots on TikTok.

First, let’s take a look at how widespread the problem really is.

On Reddit, plenty of people have started reporting that weird accounts have suddenly started following their profiles.

Why Am I Getting Spam Bots And Fake Followers On TikTok? — Source: Reddit

“For 4 days, random followers of Asian people (sometimes other pfps) keep following me. I’ve heard that you shouldn’t let them follow you so I kept blocking them, but somehow they return!” MilkyGT said on Reddit.

After this user posted his question, tons of other users in the comments also chimed in, saying that they’ve had a lot of shady accounts follow them as well.

And users aren’t the only ones facing this problem, just take a look at this popular Quora question, for example.

In other words, if you are dealing with spambots and fake followers on your Tiktok account, you are certainly not alone. It’s happening pretty much everywhere, even on our own Bytehaps account, as you can see below.

These spam bot accounts will usually have random profile pictures or pictures of attractive young women, no content of their own, and a lot more ‘following’ than ‘followers’.

Evidently, these pictures of attractive women have been stolen from the internet and the spammers are impersonating someone else.

Sometimes they will even try to seem human and respond to your DM’s, just to build up trust.

Do not fall for it.

That does bring up an important question, however…

Why is this happening, and what’s in it for them?

What we discuss in this article:

Here’s why you’re getting spam bots and fake followers on TikTok

Simply put, these spam bots and fake followers certainly do not have your best interest in mind. They want to grab attention from you or your (real) followers, one way or another, usually for malicious purposes.

1) To spam advertisements, viruses, or other malicious links

For example, a lot of those fake accounts will have a link in their bio. Sometimes, it’s just a hidden advertisement for a shopping website, for example.

The more people those bots can spam, the more real people will check out their profile and potentially click the link. When people click the link, these spammers and fraudsters usually get a monetary commission in return.

Be warned though, that you should never click these links on fake TikTok accounts. Sometimes they’re harmless ads, but they can also contain viruses, phishing websites, or links to adult content.

2) To try and get more followers of their own

Bots can also try and collect followers, by using the follow-for-follow method on TikTok. Once they’ve amassed a large number of followers, they can post spammy TikTok videos there hoping that some people would visit their website or click their advertisement.

If a bot follows a hundred different people and only one of them follows back, that might seem very insignificant.

However, if you repeat the process with hundreds of thousands of followers, and you could definitely say that the effort has been worth it for the spammers.

Sometimes, these fake accounts aren’t actually fake at all, but there’s a real and genuine TikTok account behind it. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be wary, however, as it is still usually a trick.

These people will use the follow for follow method as well, something that was once extremely popular on Instagram, hoping that you’d check out their content and give them a follow.

If you’re wondering if the follow-for-follow method still works on TikTok, check out our findings over here.

Concluding, the reason why you’re being followed by these spam bots is just pure attention for whatever shady stuff they’re trying to accomplish. They hope that you will check out their account, follow back or click on one a suspicious link in the bio.

Are TikTok spam bots dangerous?

These TikTok spam bots can certainly be dangerous if you (accidentally) click a link in their bio or in the direct messages.

Always treat these links as spam and never click them under any circumstances.

If you do click a link, your device can be compromised. Be sure to update your smartphone, tablet, or computer in case you’re worried – and installing security updates is always a good practice anyway.

How can I get rid of bot accounts following me on TikTok?

Unfortunately, there’s not a whole lot you can do about these accounts following you. You’ve got two options:

The first option is to put your TikTok account on private. Only people you know will be able to follow you and see your content.

Of course, that’s hardly ideal, especially if you want to become popular on TikTok and share your content with strangers.

You can also report these spam bot accounts and fake followers on TikTok. Here’s what happens when you report someone to TikTok and how long it takes until TikTok staff has reviewed your report.

If you’re really dealing with a ton of these spambots or fake accounts and reporting them doesn’t seem to help, you can always try emailing TikTok for a better solution.

Additionally, blocking these accounts is a pretty good idea too. That way, they won’t be able to bother you anymore, and all traces of them will be gone from your own profile.

Summary

TikTok spam bots and fake accounts suddenly following you can be a real annoyance, especially when you’re being bombarded with fake follows, comments, and likes. There are always scammers and spammers behind these profiles, usually with malicious intent. That’s why it’s important to block and report them as soon as you spot them, so they won’t be able to bother you or anyone else on TikTok again.