Skip to main content

Instagram purges fake followers, likes, and comments generated from other apps

Instagram

Instagram accounts bloated with fake likes and follows using third-party apps are about to be deflated. On Monday, November 19, Instagram shared that a machine learning update will be purging the platform of the inauthentic likes, follows, and comments created through third-party programs.

Instagram says that a new machine learning tool is now identifying accounts that used third-party apps to artificially boost their follower count as well as posting interactions. The inauthentic activity, Instagram says, will then be removed from the account. Since giving out the username and password to these types of apps can pose security risks, Instagram is also asking these users to go through a password reset.

Using an app to gain fake followers and interactions are already against Instagram’s Community Guidelines and Terms of Use — what’s changing is that Instagram now has the ability to recognize which accounts are using the apps and which followers and interactions were generated from that app. Instagram already works to remove fake accounts, and today’s announcement expands its efforts to remove fake follows, likes, and comments. While the followers may be fake, comments and likes can help boost a post farther up in the algorithms to be viewed by more real people, making automated third-party apps popular.

“Every day people come to Instagram to have real experiences, including genuine interactions. It is our responsibility to ensure these experiences aren’t disrupted by inauthentic activity,” Instagram wrote in a blog post.

Users affected by the fake purge will see an in-app notification, along with a shortcut to change the account password to lock the third party app out of the account. Other users, Instagram says, may have unknowingly given out login information to a third-party app. These users will also be notified, and Instagram suggests they change their passwords.

Like other social networks, Instagram users often complain about bots and spam. Today’s change comes after Instagram locked out several bot platforms last year that automated different interactions, including Instagress and Mass Planner.

Instagram isn’t done with the fakes purge either — the company calls today’s announcement “just another step.” The platform says additional updates will be rolling out over the next few weeks that also focus on “tackling inauthentic activity.”

Editors' Recommendations

Hillary K. Grigonis
Hillary never planned on becoming a photographer—and then she was handed a camera at her first writing job and she's been…
X rival Threads could be about to get millions of more users
Instagram Threads app.

Threads -- Meta’s rival to X, formerly Twitter -- has just launched in the European Union (EU), a market with nearly half a billion people.

The app launched in the U.S. to much fanfare in July, with Meta hoping to attract X users disillusioned with the turbulence on the platform since Elon Musk acquired it for $44 billion 14 months ago.

Read more
X (formerly Twitter) returns after global outage
A white X on a black background, which could be Twitter's new logo.

X, formerly known as Twitter, went down for about 90 minutes for users worldwide early on Thursday ET.

Anyone opening the social media app across all platforms was met with a blank timeline. On desktop, users saw a message that simply read, "Welcome to X," while on mobile the app showed suggestions for accounts to follow.

Read more
How to create multiple profiles on a Facebook account
A series of social media app icons on a colorful smartphone screen.

Facebook (and, by extension, Meta) are particular in the way that they allow users to create accounts and interact with their platform. Being the opposite of the typical anonymous service, Facebook sticks to the rule of one account per one person. However, Facebook allows its users to create multiple profiles that are all linked to one main Facebook account.

In much the same way as Japanese philosophy tells us we have three faces — one to show the world, one to show family, and one to show no one but ourselves — these profiles allow us to put a different 'face' out to different aspects or hobbies. One profile can keep tabs on your friends, while another goes hardcore into networking and selling tech on Facebook Marketplace.

Read more