A prominent art historian was left distraught after being impersonated on Instagram by an account that has gained more followers than her, but the owners of the Meta platform have refused to take action.
Ruth Millington, author of Muse: Uncovering the Hidden Figures Behind Art History’s Masterpieces, was first alerted to the impersonator early last month, when an artist informed her that she had received a message from the rogue user.
The mysterious individual, who changed his username a staggering 11 times, posed as the expert and claimed he wanted to include the artist’s work in an exhibition at Manchester’s distinguished Lowry Gallery.
The account has almost 7,700 followers, more than 1,000 more than Ms Millington.
Millington, 37, who has also appeared as an arts expert on radio and television, reported the account on Instagram itself, but was told in an automated response that the account had not violated its “community guidelines.”
But Instagram guidelines warn users “not to impersonate others” and tell them not to create accounts for the purpose of “deceiving others.”
Millington also sent a formal email to Instagram, which is owned by billionaire Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta firm, but says they “have done nothing.”
She told MailOnline: ‘I feel really disappointed at their inaction. They say they have community guidelines. This is violating them and they are not doing anything about it.
Prominent art historian Ruth Millington was left distraught after being impersonated on Instagram by an account that gained more followers than her, but the owners of the Meta platform refused to take action.
Ruth Millington, author of Muse: Uncovering the Hidden Figures Behind Art History’s Masterpieces, was alerted to the fraudulent account early last month. Above: the Instagram page of the historian and that of the fraudulent account ‘R_T_M_C
‘I know I’m not the only one. It’s distressing, it’s disconcerting. For me, given the nature of my work in the art world, the art market is based on trust and relationships.
‘Trust is one of the most important currencies in the art market: these are valuable works of art.
‘I have spent a decade working with galleries and museums and my concern is that they may undo some of the goodwill I have.
“This isn’t just a personal account, it’s a way I run my business, so it’s particularly disappointing that it’s not being taken seriously.”
Mrs Millington, who used to work for the distinguished art dealer Connaught Brown to distinguish fraudulent works from the real thing, added: “You think you should look at fake art, not fake art historians.”
When she tried to contact the user directly, she was immediately blocked and now relies on her friends to notify her when a new post appears.
The message sent on Millington’s behalf to the artist who alerted the historian also asked about the sale of art in the form of what are known as non-fungible tokens (NFTs), a digitized method of storing unique collectible assets, such as paintings.
It said: ‘Hi, I’m Ruth Cheryl Millington from the UK. I’m reaching out to you because I’ve been captivated by the artwork on your Behance profile and am impressed by your creativity.
The message that the user sent to an artist, who immediately alerted Millington
‘I am currently curating and appearing in an upcoming exhibition presentation with (The Lowry). Therefore, I would be honored to include your work in this esteemed presentation if you are interested in selling your Arts and Nfts.
“I look forward to hearing from you and discussing how we can work together to bring your art to the forefront of this exciting exhibition.”
The most recent post from the user, who changed their name to ‘R_T_M_C’ after being contacted by Millington, was posted two weeks ago.
It was a repost of a professionally taken image of Ms Millington and was captioned: “A wonderful day.”
The photographer who took the photo complained in a comment but was later blocked by the account operator.
To confirm Millington’s claim that they are being impersonated, MailOnline messaged the account addressed to her and asked for advice on how to order a photo.
A quick response said: ‘Sure! What kind of advice do you need when ordering a painting?
‘Are you looking for tips on finding an artist, communicating your vision, budgeting, or something else? Let me know and I’ll guide you!’
One of the posts from the fake account. He reposted images, along with similar captions, originally shared by Ms Millington.
Another post copied from Ms Millington’s Instagram account, which she uses for professional purposes.
Posts on the account regularly include images of Ms Millington herself or artwork she has previously shared.
Videos Ms. Millington shared in the course of her work were also republished. One shows the historian at an event at The Goods Yard bar in Birmingham.
The video was posted on The Goods Yard’s Instagram account in September and was later re-shared by Ms Millington.
The version of the fake account included much of the same headline, including a request to “Keep an eye on this page for full details on all of our upcoming events.”
Millington, who joined Instagram in 2017, added: “My concern is for my reputation and also for the artists who are approached with false exposure opportunities.”
‘They are going to exploit these artists. Some of those artists will notice, but others won’t.
And what’s at stake is my reputation. “I worked very hard to build a good reputation.”
The historian is also the author of the children’s book This Book Will Make You An Artist, which was published earlier this year.
Another post featuring an image Millington took of her holding a book about Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh.
The message Millington received on Instagram after reporting the fraudulent account. The response said the account had not been deleted because it “does not go against our community guidelines.” But its guidelines warn users: “Do not impersonate others and do not create accounts in order to violate our guidelines or deceive others.”
When MailOnline approached Meta, a spokeswoman for communications company Edelman responded on behalf of the company that they wanted to “investigate this appropriately to resolve this situation.”
But since then neither Meta nor Edelman have given a formal response.
The fraudulent account joined Instagram in October 2022.
The first post featuring Ms Millington’s photography or the artwork she shared was published ten weeks ago.
Since then, more than 25 posts have been published online showing his image or photographs that the historian has previously shared.
Prior to Ms. Millington’s first mention, several posts referenced NFTs, while many others revealed artificially generated images.
A page on Instagram’s website boasts that the social media site “proactively combats phishing.”
They add: ‘We use systems and tools that constantly monitor the Instagram ecosystem for potential impostors of public figures and creators.
Muse: Discovering the Hidden Figures Behind the Masterpieces of Art History was published in 2022
‘Our tools use a range of signals, scale detection systems, and community reporting to identify potential imposter accounts.
‘When an account is identified, a decision is immediately made based on our confidence or it is sent for review according to our policies.
‘We also enable a series of “friction points” on Instagram when we determine potential phishing behavior.
“For example, requiring an ID to create an account under a celebrity’s name or having to choose a label (such as a fan account).”
Their community guidelines also warn: “Do not impersonate others and do not create accounts for the purpose of violating our guidelines or deceiving others.”