What Happened to Devumi? It Closed, Then Got Banned

Devumi sold fake followers, likes and views from Florida, mostly on Twitter. In January 2018 The New York Times reported that it drew on millions of automated accounts, some of them copied from real people. New York's Attorney General opened an investigation, and Devumi "ceased operations in mid-2018," the office later said. In 2019 New York, Florida and the FTC all settled with it. The FTC's order bans it from selling social media influence. Its old address now forwards to a sponsored list of follower sellers.

Quick Answer: Devumi shut down in mid-2018, months after the Times published "The Follower Factory" in January. On January 30, 2019, New York's Attorney General settled with Devumi and called it the first finding by a law enforcement agency that selling fake engagement is illegal. On October 21, 2019, the FTC settled its first case over fake social media influence. Its order set a $2.5 million judgment against Devumi's owner, suspended on payment of $250,000, and banned Devumi from selling social media influence.

"Devumi" gets about 170 Google searches a month, by Google's Keyword Planner on October 24, 2026.

Devumi's timeline

Date	What happened
October 2010	devumi.com registered
January 27, 2018	The Times publishes "The Follower Factory"
Mid-2018	Devumi stops operating
January 30, 2019	New York's settlement
2019	Florida's settlement
October 21, 2019	The FTC's settlement and ban
August 14, 2024	The FTC's rule on fake indicators
October 2026	devumi.com forwards to a sponsored list

The FTC (October 21, 2019 and August 14, 2024), New York's Attorney General (January 30, 2019), Davis+Gilbert (July 10, 2019), Verisign's registry and the Internet Archive, read through our server on October 24, 2026.

What did The New York Times find?

"The Follower Factory" said Devumi drew on "an estimated stock of at least 3.5 million automated" accounts, as Google previews the story. "At least 55,000 of the accounts use the names, profile pictures" and other details of real Twitter users, it reported. The Fashion Law's summary of the story put Devumi's customers at about 200,000, with Twitter follower orders "starting at $12" in 2018. Its headquarters, the Times found, wasn't much: a small office suite above a restaurant in West Palm Beach.

What did New York and the FTC do?

New York went first. Its January 2019 settlement bars Devumi from the same misconduct. Some of the fake accounts "copied real people's social media pictures and profiles without the knowledge or consent of the person whose identity had been copied," the office found. Florida's Attorney General reached a settlement with Devumi as well, the law firm Davis+Gilbert noted that July.

The FTC followed in October 2019 with its "first-ever complaint challenging the sale of fake indicators of social media influence," as the agency put it. Its complaint listed what Devumi had sold:

What Devumi sold	The FTC's count
Fake Twitter follower orders	More than 58,000
Fake YouTube view sales	Over 32,000
Fake YouTube subscriber sales	More than 4,000
Fake LinkedIn followers	More than 800

The FTC's announcement of October 21, 2019, read through our server on October 24, 2026.

The order bans the defendants "from selling or assisting others in selling social media influence," in the FTC's words. It set a $2.5 million judgment against Devumi's owner, the amount the FTC alleges the owner was paid, and suspended all but $250,000 of it. The full amount comes due if the owner misrepresented their finances. "Posting fake reviews on shopping websites or buying and selling fake followers is illegal," said Andrew Smith, then the director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection.

What does devumi.com show now?

The registry still dates the domain to October 8, 2010, so it's never lapsed. The Internet Archive's copies from July and August 2018 still show the shop's homepage, with its promise to "Quickly gain followers, viewers, likes & more" in place. By April 2021 it said "Devumi is under construction" instead. In 2023 it was a template blog calling itself "The world's largest social media marketing resource," with a placeholder street address. On October 24, 2026, devumi.com forwarded to a sponsored "6 Best Sites to Buy Instagram Followers" article on a California local newspaper's site. We don't know who holds the domain now.

What changed after Devumi?

The FTC wrote the idea into a rule. Its rule of August 14, 2024 "prohibits anyone from selling or buying fake indicators of social media influence, such as followers or views generated by a bot or hijacked account," in the agency's words. It applies when the buyer knew or should have known the numbers were fake and used them to misrepresent influence "for a commercial purpose," the FTC says. Penalties go up to $53,088 per violation, a figure the Federal Register says stays the same in 2026. In December 2025, FTC staff sent warning letters to 10 companies under the rule. Our page on whether it's illegal to buy TikTok followers goes through who it covers. Our history of Instagram bots that got shut down covers other closures.

Where does HCLOUT fit?

We sell followers, likes and views ourselves, and that's worth knowing as you read. We can't give you legal cover: if you use bought followers to sell your reach to brands, the FTC's 2024 rule applies whoever you buy from. Devumi's biggest lines were Twitter followers and YouTube views. We don't sell X services: none of our 16 platforms is X. We don't sell YouTube services either. Our Instagram followers cost $2.88 per 1,000 on our price list of October 24, 2026, with a 30-day refill on that service. We never ask for your password.

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Frequently asked questions

What happened to Devumi?

It stopped operating in mid-2018 after the Times investigation. In 2019 it settled with New York, Florida and the FTC, whose order bans it from selling social media influence.

When did Devumi shut down?

In mid-2018. It stopped "shortly after the commencement of the Attorney General's investigation and related publicity caused a major decline in its sales," New York's Attorney General said.

How much did Devumi pay the FTC?

The order set a $2.5 million judgment against Devumi's owner and suspended all but $250,000 of it. The rest comes due if the owner misrepresented their finances to the FTC.

Did Devumi use real people's identities?

The Times found at least 55,000 accounts using real Twitter users' names, profile pictures and other details. That's what New York's settlement called illegal impersonation.

Is devumi.com still working?

It hasn't been Devumi's shop since 2018. On October 24, 2026 it forwarded to a sponsored list of follower sellers on a local newspaper's site.

Is selling fake followers illegal now?

In the US, the FTC's 2024 rule bars selling or buying fake indicators of social media influence when the buyer knew or should have known they were fake and used them for a commercial purpose. This isn't legal advice.

Sources

• Federal Trade Commission, Devumi settlement announcement, October 21, 2019, read through our server on October 24, 2026
• New York State Attorney General, Devumi settlement announcement, January 30, 2019, read October 24, 2026
• The New York Times, "The Follower Factory," January 27, 2018, as Google previews it, and The Fashion Law's summary of January 29, 2018
• Davis+Gilbert, "State Attorneys General Take the Reins in Policing Deceptive Advertising," July 10, 2019
• Verisign's registry record and the Internet Archive's captures of devumi.com, and the live address, read October 24, 2026
• The FTC's rule of August 14, 2024, its warning letters of December 22, 2025, and the Federal Register notice of September 15, 2026
• Hclout's service list, read October 24, 2026, and Google Ads Keyword Planner, October 24, 2026