Fake social media engagement costs as little as $1.40 – but our naivete is to blame

New research from cybersecurity firm Surfshark highlights how easily public perception can be manipulated online, revealing that artificially generated engagement costs from $1.40 per 1,000 views.

However, experts warn that the minimal cost of fake metrics is secondary to a more dangerous issue: a widespread cultural naivete and lack of scepticism among everyday users.

According to Surfshark’s Chief Security Officer, Tomas Stamulis, internet users frequently trust advertisements and digital pages without question. Because online mindsets are rarely tuned to filter content for ‘legitimacy markers’, people easily fall victim to online scams masked by inflated popularity.

Surfshark’s analysis demonstrates that fake views are consistently the cheapest form of artificial engagement across major social platforms, starting at $1.40 per 1,000 views on TikTok and reaching $6.70 on YouTube. Conversely, comments remain the priciest form of fake interaction, averaging $93 per 1,000 on YouTube, $104 on Instagram, $140 on TikTok, and climbing to $287 on Facebook.

“Views can be easily accomplished by bots and do not need a trusted account or human interaction,” Stamulis explained. “If the platform removes bots, the number of views is not affected. On the other hand, comments are opposite. If a fake account is removed, the comment also disappears.”

Because spam filters constantly scan for automated interactions, bad actors increasingly rely on a mix of artificial intelligence and human input to bypass security. When users encounter overwhelming positivity and high engagement without balanced critique, Stamulis advises treating the content with deep scepticism.

The study details the low cost of fake followers and shares. Purchasing 1,000 fake followers typically ranges between $14 and $20 on Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and X, though YouTube stands as an outlier at $78. Similarly, fake shares and reposts cost between $17 and $68 depending on the platform.

“Large amounts of followers are often considered as the page or person has genuine public interest,” Stamulis noted. “However, you would be surprised if you checked the actual list who follow… They have rows of ghost accounts, bots with generated usernames, and purchased profiles that have never watched a single second.”

https://surfshark.com/research/chart/fake-engagement-on-social-media

Tips to spot fake accounts and scams

To protect against fraudulent pages and deceptive advertisements, cybersecurity experts recommend checking for these key indicators:

• Check the follower-to-engagement ratio: A legitimate account generally secures likes equal to about 1% to 5% of its total follower count. An account with 500,000 followers receiving only 200 likes is a red flag.

• Scrutinise the comments section: Generic phrases like “Great content!” or “Amazing post” posted within a narrow time window with similar phrasing often indicate automated bot activity.

• Analyse growth history: Look out for sudden, unnatural spikes in follower counts using account growth tracking tools.

• Review individual profiles: Sample 10 to 20 profiles following the page. Bot networks typically feature uniform username formats, identical account creation dates and follow hundreds of accounts while maintaining few connections themselves.