Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can be shared publicly or with preapproved followers. Users can browse other users' content by tag and location, view trending content, like photos, and follow other users to add their content to a personal feed. Taken from Wikipedia.
Terms of Service, Privacy Policy
Considering all 3 Meta companies (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp) use the same privacy policy, I'll just repeat what I said from the Facebook SPT. Big mistake providing any type of information to Meta.
Might be a few hiccups here and there, but you can make it work with either AnonAddy or SimpleLogin.
Namely 2FA over SMS, but that's arguably the least secure 2FA method out there.
You honestly don't need to read the Privacy Policy to tell Facebook Instagram is spyware.
Gonna sound like a broken record here, but Facebook Instagram is spyware.
Hmm...
Hmmmm...
Hmmmmmm...
They even log when you've scrolled past a post. Jesus.
They don't explicitly say they have 3rd party service providers, but the way they worded it pretty much confirms they're not in house.
One of Facebook's Instagram's biggest crime in the eyes of... well, everyone.
They're called Integrated Partners and include 3rd party advertisers. I'm kinda surprised Facebook Instagram welcomes some competition.
How else are they supposed to build a scarily accurate profile on you?
This was my first encounter with the illusion of free will switches. Even when I turned them all off I still somehow got personalized ads. That was when I decided to stop being a sucker for Meta. Never had an Instagram account lmao.
Don't let the Privacy Policy fool you, Facebook was found indefinitely storing data of banned accounts with no way for them to access the delete option due to them being banned. Folks, Facebook sucks.
Disclaimer: While the above statement mentions Facebook, Instagram is pretty much an extension of Facebook at this point meaning your Instagram account is by default an extension of your Facebook account.
Worst part is this can happen either after you create your account or months after. Do yourselves a favor and stay away from any and all Meta products.
"We can't have you looking at the source code and finding out how much we spy on you"
- A definitely real Meta representative I had coffee with this morning.
Barinsta is one of the more popular ones out there. For desktop just use it in a privacy respecting browser with Ublock Origin. Although if I were you, I'd never use it at all.
Facebook Instagram is the product and Meta is the company. Your loss, Zuckerberg.
Open up your search engine, and type in "Cambridge Analytica data scandal".
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Analysis: In the words of Stallman: "3 mouths, one stomach". While Instagram has a slightly higher score than Facebook, that does not mean it is more private. Instagram, like other Meta products, collect a ton of data about you and send it to the Meta hivemind for them to create a scarily accurate profile about you and sell some of that data to advertisers. So whether you use Facebook, Instagram, or WhatsApp it don't matter; Zuck will know everything about you the moment you start using any of those services. While it may seem tempting to be "hip with the kids" and share what drink or dessert you had for brunch or something, Meta will inevitably use that data to capitalize on your online existence and make you their product. Yes, they are making money off of a few photos you shared to your Instagram feed while you don't get even a cent from it. It's times like these where I want people to start opening their eyes to the injustice of surveillance capitalism and stop giving companies like Meta the power they need to basically control the population. I'm not saying to give up social media entirely, I imagine many people still want to keep in contact with their friends and family and tell them how their day went (and have a public image to uphold I guess). I just want to say: social media is anti-privacy by default, and if you do decide to establish a sizeable online presence go with a provider that actually respects your privacy. Like Mastodon.