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Instagram Privacy Summary
Social Media
high Risk
Instagram is a visual social network for sharing photos, videos, messaging, discovery, and in-app shopping with personalized feeds and advertising.
Quick Summary
- What They Collect: Account details, posts, messages, device signals, location, and cookies for personalization (ads and features).
- How They Use & Share It: Personalize services and ads, share with Meta companies, advertisers, vendors, and law enforcement.
- Your Rights: View, download, delete data; manage ad settings and communications (varies by jurisdiction).
Why You Should Care About Instagram's Privacy Practices
- Instagram collects high-risk data including private messages, location, and device identifiers which can enable deep profiling and re-identification.
- Broad ad profiling affects what you see and can enable targeted advertising across apps, impacting privacy and consumer targeting.
- Data is shared globally across Meta Companies and many vendors, increasing exposure risk from breaches or legal demands.
- Deletion is not instant—backups, legal holds, and cross-product sharing can keep data accessible for months; manage settings and downloads proactively.
Privacy Highlights
What They Collect
- Account information (email, username, profile picture)
- User content and files (posts, comments, photos, videos, messages)
- Demographic information (age, gender)
- Feedback data (surveys, research responses)
- Payment information (truncated credit card info for purchases)
How They Share Data
- Business affiliates (other Meta Companies / internal affiliates)
- Service providers (vendors, measurement and marketing vendors)
- Third-party partners (advertisers, integrated partners, audience network)
- Advertising partners (advertisers and Audience Network publishers)
Data Retention
Keeps information as long as necessary to provide services, comply with law, or protect interests; deletion begins within 30 days, may take up to 90 days for removal and longer for backups or legal preservation .
Your Rights
- Access data (view your information)
- Rectify data (update profile and contact information)
- Erase or limit processing (delete content, delete account)
- Object to processing (ad settings / opt-out choices where available)
Detailed Analysis
Concerning Practices
- Shares data widely across Meta Companies and external partners
- Collects extensive personal and sensitive data (messages, device signals, location, special category info if provided)
- Uses data for profiling and highly targeted advertising (Meta Audience Network)
- Transfers data internationally (global sharing and cross-border processing)
- Retains data 'as long as needed' with broad, case-by-case retention rules
- User control is mediated through settings but many uses (ads, cross-product sharing) continue while data is retained
Personal Data Types
Account information (email, username, profile picture)User content and files (posts, comments, photos, videos, messages)Demographic information (age, gender)Feedback data (surveys, research responses)Payment information (truncated credit card info for purchases)Profile information (bio, contacts, followers/following)Sales and marketing data (purchases, commerce interactions)Support data (photo/video selfie for account support)Browser information (browser, device characteristics, device software)Geolocation information (GPS, device location signals, IP-derived location)Service usage information (time, frequency, duration of activities)Website usage data (cookies and similar technologies)Information from other users (content others share about you, connections)Publicly available information
Tracking Methods
Essential cookiesAnalytics cookiesAdvertising cookiesSocial media cookiesPixel tags (cookies and similar technologies / audience tracking)Web beacons (cookies and similar technologies)Local storage and device identifiers (device signals, identifiers)
Third Parties
Business affiliates (other Meta Companies / internal affiliates)Service providers (vendors, measurement and marketing vendors)Third-party partners (advertisers, integrated partners, audience network)Advertising partners (advertisers and Audience Network publishers)Government authorities (legal requests, law enforcement)Law enforcement (responses to subpoenas, warrants, legal orders)
User Controls
Access data (view your information)Rectify data (update profile and contact information)Erase or limit processing (delete content, delete account)Object to processing (ad settings / opt-out choices where available)Data portability (port and download your information)Withdraw consent (where applicable via settings)Opt-out of marketing (manage communication preferences)Delete account (initiate account deletion)
Frequently Asked Questions About Instagram
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Legal Disclaimer
This analysis is provided for informational purposes only and should not be used as legal advice. Consult with legal professionals for matters requiring legal guidance.