After an Instagram post in an account that dubs itself the “Official Account of Charleston” raised some eyebrows, the city of Charleston is stressing that it has no idea who runs the deceptive profile.
The profile, found at the handle @charlestonsc on the Facebook-owned photo sharing app, has posted more than 1,600 posts of Charleston’s skylines, landmarks, beaches, and establishments over the past three years.
It has more than 76,000 followers, including The Post & Courier, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, and the Charleston International Airport.
But despite its relatively well-kept aesthetic, and a link at the top that leads to the city’s official website, the account was the subject of media inquiries after a Tuesday evening post advocated against donating money to panhandlers, who it called “street hustlers.”
The questionable post features a photo of The American Theater on King Street and urges its followers to donate money to charitable organizations rather than “facilitating drug use and petty crime.”
[embed-1] The city released a statement distancing itself from the fraudulent account Wednesday morning.
“Despite its self-identification as the ‘Official Account of Charleston’ and link to the city’s official website, this Instagram account is not affiliated with the city of Charleston, nor is it run by the city’s communications staff,” said city spokesman Jack O’Toole in a statement. “Instagram has been notified, and the city’s legal department is working to address the matter. The city of Charleston does not currently operate an official Instagram account.”
The city does not operate an Instagram account, but the Charleston Area Convention and Visitor’s Bureau does at instagram.com/explorecharleston.
Though it’s easy to see how one could be fooled by the profile, there are some key tell-tale signs that the account isn’t all that credible. For starters, its content seems to be mostly re-posted images that are highly saturated and heavily filtered. Additionally, its description is awkwardly written and offers no official information.
The fraudulent account has not responded to a direct message by CP.
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