As a professional face painter, my priority is the magic of transformation and the safety of the families I serve. Our industry is visual — but that makes our photos, especially of children, targets for fake accounts and automated bots. These accounts steal real imagery to create deceptive profiles, often for data harvesting or scams.
I've compiled this guide to help you recognise these bots and understand how to protect our community — without accidentally helping the scammers.
It's also one of the key reasons I made a deliberate decision early on: I do not photograph children with their faces painted. My practice boards and display boards exist precisely for this reason — to showcase designs beautifully and professionally, without putting real children's images at risk. Recent events have only confirmed that this was absolutely the right call.
🕵️ How to Spot a Fake Profile
Bots are designed to look real at a glance, but they almost always fail the "community test." Watch for these red flags:
- The Ghost Bio — They usually have blank "About" sections. No listed website, no business location, and no real-world details.
- Zero Mentions — Real artists are tagged by clients and colleagues. If a page has no tags or check-ins from other real accounts, it's likely a fake.
- The Silent Commenter — They often post generic, high-frequency comments like "Beautiful work!" but will never respond to specific questions or follow-up conversations.
- Timeline Mismatch — Check their profile history. Fake accounts often have blank walls or a sudden burst of activity (e.g., 50 posts in 5 days) after years of inactivity.
- Recent Creation — Use the Page Transparency tool to check the creation date. If an "established" professional page was created last week, it's a scam.
- No profile photo, or a stock/stolen image — Run the profile picture through a reverse image search (Google Images or TinEye) to check if it's been lifted from elsewhere.
- No engagement despite a large following — If an account has thousands of followers but only a handful of likes per post, something doesn't add up.
🚫 Why You Must Not Engage
It is tempting to comment and warn others — but the algorithm treats all engagement as "good" content:
- Algorithm Boost — Your comment signals that the post is popular, pushing it into the feeds of your friends and family.
- Validation — High engagement numbers make a scammer look more "legitimate" to unsuspecting users.
- Data Risks — Simply interacting can flag your profile as an "active target" for future phishing or identity theft attempts.
Silence is the most powerful tool you have. Don't feed the bot.
🛡️ Beyond the Watermark: Protecting Our Photos
You may have noticed I limit full-face photos of children. While watermarks are traditional, modern AI removal apps can now erase corner logos in seconds. To keep images safe, we use "Digital Defence" tactics:
- Strategic Placement — Placing logos across complex paint textures makes them nearly impossible for AI to "guess" and remove without ruining the photo.
- Tight Cropping — Focusing on the eye or cheek art instead of the full face protects a child's identity while still showcasing the skill.
- In-Photo Branding — Holding a physical business card in the shot creates real-world lighting and shadows that automated bots struggle to edit out.
Why My Practice Boards Are Part of This
When I designed my practice and display boards, the goal was to give face painters a professional, reusable surface to showcase their artistry — without needing to photograph real clients, especially children. This protects both the artist and the subject. Recent events have reinforced exactly why this approach matters. Your designs deserve to be seen on your terms, credited to you, and shared with your permission.
✊ What You Can Do
If you see my work — or a photo of your child — on a page that isn't mine:
- Do Not Comment — Silence is the best way to starve a bot of reach.
- Report the Privacy Violation — If the photo is of a minor under 13, parents can use the Facebook Privacy Contact Form to request immediate removal.
- Alert Me Privately — Send a screenshot or link via DM. This allows me to file an official Intellectual Property report without boosting their post.
- Audit your own followers periodically — Tools like HypeAuditor or SparkToro can help identify suspicious followers on your own accounts.
Stay Vigilant, Stay Protected
Our community is warm, generous, and creative — but it's worth being savvy about who is engaging with your content and why. If something feels off, trust your instincts.
If you've had a similar experience or have tips to share, I'd love to hear from you in the comments below.
Stay safe out there. 💛