On November 20, 2018, Instagram said it had started removing fake likes, followers and comments from accounts using third-party apps to inflate their popularity. The move put the photo-sharing platform in line with similar clean-up efforts already seen on Facebook and Twitter.
The company said the purge began on November 19 and was aimed at what it described as “inauthentic likes, followers and comments.” According to Instagram, the problem was being driven by services that help users boost their audience artificially, undermining the experience on the platform.
In a blog post, Instagram said it had a duty to protect users from manipulated engagement. The company added that third-party apps generating fake activity violate its Community Guidelines and Terms of Use.
“It is our responsibility to ensure these experiences aren’t disrupted by inauthentic activity,” Instagram said. “This type of behavior is bad for the community, and third-party apps that generate inauthentic likes, follows and comments violate our Community Guidelines and Terms of Use.”
Instagram said accounts identified as using such services would receive an in-app warning explaining that the company had removed the inauthentic likes, follows and comments they had given to others. It also said users would be asked to secure their accounts by changing their passwords.
The company warned that people who share login details with third-party apps may unknowingly allow those services to access their accounts. Instagram said that not only creates bad behavior on the platform, but also leaves accounts less secure.
Users who had “unknowingly” shared their credentials with a third-party app would also get an in-app message, the company said. Instagram advised those users to change their passwords so the apps would lose access.
The company said it had built machine learning tools to identify accounts using these services and remove the inauthentic activity. It added that the measures would continue, and that accounts persisting with third-party apps to grow their audience could see their Instagram experience affected.
Instagram also said it would update users on further steps in the following weeks.
The crackdown came after Twitter said in July it would purge “locked accounts,” a move that caused prominent figures around the world, including President Uhuru Kenyatta and former US President Barrack Obama, to lose followers. Facebook has also been under pressure over its role in spreading fake news and propaganda during election periods in several countries.
