Current:Home > MarketsShadowbanned? How to check if Instagram has muted you and what you can do about it-VaTradeCoin
Shadowbanned? How to check if Instagram has muted you and what you can do about it
lotradecoin transparency View Date:2024-12-25 22:44:44
This article wasco-published with The Markup, a nonprofit, investigative newsroom that challenges technology to serve the public good.Sign up for its newsletters.
As The Markup was investigating whether Instagram practiced shadowbanning—covertly hiding what people post without telling them—we heard from so many Instagram users that they felt helpless after the platform removed their content or kept them from commenting and posting.
We also heard that the appeals process left people frustrated. There’s not much documentation on when exactly users can appeal Instagram’s decisions; as The Markup found, identical content posted by different users can be treated completely differently.
If you think you’ve been shadowbanned on Instagram—or if the app has notified you that it has removed your content or limited your account in some way—here’s what you can do.
One note: Instagram often changes app settings without notice, so these steps work as of the time this story was published—but if they don’t, you may want to hunt around in a “Help” section.
Check Account Status
Under “Account Status,” users can see the content Instagram removed, what features they’re currently banned from using, or if they’re at risk of having their account deleted by Instagram and why.
Business and creative accounts can check if they can be recommended to people who aren’t following them and which, if any, of their posts went against Instagram’s recommendation guidelines. These accounts can also see how violations may be affecting their ability to use Instagram’s monetization tools.
Instagram claims that if a user’s post is removed, the user is able to request a review “for the vast majority of violation types” except when there are “extreme safety concerns, such as child exploitation imagery.” If Instagram allows a user to request a review, "Account Status" is where they can submit it.
But what shows up under Account Status isn’t the complete picture. The Markup found that users can’t always see what actions Instagram has taken when it believes someone’s account or content doesn’t follow guidelines, despite its claims otherwise. Certain restrictions, such as banning a user from being able to comment, did not show up under “Features you can’t use.”
Parental Control:A guide to parental controls on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, more social platforms
We repeatedly found that content removed for going against guidelines on “spam” or “dangerous organizations and individuals” didn’t show up in the “Removed content” section under Account Status, though it shows up on another part of the platform (check out our next section).
Still, it’s worth checking Account Status to see if there’s any information on whether your account has been banned or restricted.
On a desktop or mobile browser, you can go to Account Status directly.
Check Violations
If you can’t find your removed content under Account Status, sometimes it will show up under “Violations.”
On a desktop or mobile browser, go to the Help page, select “Support Requests,” then “Violations.”
Appeal Instagram’s Decision
If Instagram took down your post and you don’t agree that you were in violation of the guidelines, you can request a review by following these instructions.
If you were never given the option to request a review or you’ve appealed Instagram’s decision twice and your content still hasn’t been restored, you can try escalating the issue to the Oversight Board, an organization formed to act as an independent arbiter of precedent-setting moderation decisions. The Board doesn’t take up every case that’s submitted to it, and it can move slowly, but its decisions do make a difference: In December 2023, the Board reversed two moderation decisions dealing with videos of hostages kidnapped from Israel and the aftermath of an Israeli strike on Al-Shifa Hospital.
If you did not get the option to request a review on deleted posts, you can submit an appeal directly on the board’s website.
During our investigation, The Markup found that people were not given the option to appeal the decision when their activity was categorized as “spam.” Several people who posted comments criticizing the Israel–Hamas war had their comments deleted for being spam. Meta spokesperson Dani Lever denied that Instagram purposefully categorizes some user content as spam.
veryGood! (86837)
Related
- Taylor Swift makes history as most decorated artist at Billboard Music Awards
- CVS and Walgreens to start dispensing the abortion pill in states where it's legal
- More than 100,000 mouthwash bottles recalled for increased risk of poisoning children
- Jury convicts first rioter to enter Capitol building during Jan. 6 attack
- Taxpayers could get $500 'inflation refund' checks under New York proposal: What to know
- What is Super Tuesday? Why it matters and what to watch
- 'Goodnight, Odie:' Historic Odysseus lunar lander powers down after a week on the moon
- Man being evicted shoots, kills Missouri police officer and process server, police say
- Video shows drone spotted in New Jersey sky as FBI says it is investigating
- As Caitlin Clark closes in on all-time scoring record, how to watch Iowa vs. Ohio State
Ranking
- Luigi Mangione's Lawyer Speaks Out in UnitedHealthcare CEO Murder Case
- New Giants manager Bob Melvin gets his man as team strikes deal with third baseman Matt Chapman
- Wendy Williams' guardianship is the subject of a new documentary. Here's how it works
- Americans are saving less and spending more. Could that raise the risk of recession?
- Atmospheric river and potential bomb cyclone bring chaotic winter weather to East Coast
- Britt Reid, son of Andy Reid, has prison sentence commuted by Missouri Gov. Mike Parson
- Social media is giving men ‘bigorexia,' or muscle dysmorphia. We need to talk about it.
- U.S. health officials drop 5-day isolation time for COVID-19
Recommendation
-
Shanghai bear cub Junjun becomes breakout star
-
Video captures rare sighting: A wolverine running through an Oregon field
-
Russian disinformation is about immigration. The real aim is to undercut Ukraine aid
-
Ultra-processed foods may raise risk of diabetes, heart disease — even early death: study
-
Netizens raise privacy concerns over Acra's Bizfile search function revealing citizens' IC numbers
-
Hailey Bieber's Sister Alaia Baldwin Aronow Arrested for Assault and Battery
-
Death of Jon Stewart's dog prompts flood of donations to animal shelter
-
In Georgia, a bill to cut all ties with the American Library Association is advancing