Instagram is a great platform for sharing photos and videos with your friends, but it's important to be aware of your privacy settings. In this blog post, we'll walk you through the different privacy settings available on Instagram and show you how to adjust them to protect your children and keep them safe on their mobile phones while using the app.
If you’d like to know more about Instagram and how it works, check out our Parents guide to Instagram.
Why Instagram privacy matters
Instagram is a popular social media platform with more than one billion active users. It's a popular platform for staying connected with friends and family, but with so many people sharing photos and videos on the platform, it's vital to know how to adjust your privacy settings to protect your children.
If your children's accounts aren't protected, anyone can view their content. This includes strangers, which is potentially dangerous. There’s the potential that anyone could use your children's photos and videos, and can even contact them directly if their account isn't private.
The good news is that you can set Instagram's built-in parental controls to create a safe environment, as well as the built-in parental controls on iPhones and iPads. You could also use third-party parental control apps. There are even apps that let you monitor your kids' phone usage for added peace of mind.
Why should I set up privacy settings for my child on Instagram?
There are a number of compelling reasons why you should set up privacy settings for your child on Instagram.
- It can help protect them from online predators and strangers. If you make their account private, only people you approve can follow them and see their photos and videos.
- It can help prevent cyberbullying. If your child's account is private, bullies can be less likely to target them.
- It can stop strangers from viewing your children's photos and videos.
- It can help protect your family's privacy. If you have young children, you may not want their photos and videos to be public.
- It can help you monitor your child's activity on Instagram. If you're concerned about what they're posting, you can check their account if it's private.
- It can help you control who sees your family's photos, videos, or other information.
- It can give you peace of mind knowing that your child is using Instagram safely.
Overall, setting up privacy settings on Instagram can be an effective way to help protect your children and family from online risks.
How to set up privacy settings on Instagram
In this section, we will cover ways to set up a range of privacy settings on Instagram.
How to make an account private
If you want to make your Instagram account private, here's how:
- Open the Instagram app and go to your profile page
- Tap on the three lines in the top right corner
- Tap on Settings
- Tap on Privacy
- Toggle Private Account to On.
How to unfollow someone else
If you're following someone and want to unfollow them, here's how:
- Open the Instagram app and go to your profile
- Tap Following near your profile photo
- Find the person you want to unfollow and tap Following next to their name
- Confirm that you want to unfollow them by tapping Unfollow.
How to manage comments under photos and videos
If you want to manage comments under photos and videos, here's how:
- Open the Instagram app and go to your profile page
- Tap on the three lines in the top right corner
- Tap on Settings
- Tap on Privacy
- Under Comments, select to block or allow comments from Your Followers, People You Follow, or No One.
How to turn on filtering of comments
If you want to manage comments under photos and videos, here's how:
- Open the Instagram app and go to the post you want to manage comments for
- Tap on the three dots in the top right corner of the post
- Tap on Settings
- Under Comments, select an option: Everyone, People You Follow, or Off
- If you want to approve comments before they're posted, toggle Moderate Comments to On.
- If you want to hide comments that contain certain words, tap Hide Inappropriate Comments
- Enter the words or phrases you want to hide, then tap Done.
How to set up Close Friends settings
- Tap your profile photo in the lower right corner to visit your profile
- Then, in the upper right corner, click Close Friends. Scroll down to Suggested (Android) or Suggestion (iPhone)
- Press Add or select the accounts you wish to add to your Close Friends list.
How to restrict an Instagram account
If you want to restrict an Instagram account, here's how:
- Open the Instagram app and go to your profile page
- Tap on the three lines in the top right corner
- Tap on Settings
- Tap Privacy
- Scroll down to Connections
- Tap on Restricted Accounts
- Type in the username of the person you want to restrict
- Tap on Restrict next to the account name.
How to report posts, profiles, and other issues
If you want to report something on Instagram, here's how:
- Open the Instagram app and go to the post or profile you want to report
- Tap on the three dots in the top right corner of the post
- Tap on Report
- Select why you're reporting this content and tap Send.
If you want to report someone's account, you can also do this from their profile page.
- Tap on the three dots in the top right corner of the screen
- Tap on Report
- Select why you're reporting this account and tap Send.
How to hide likes under content
If you want to hide likes under content, here's how:
- Open the Instagram app and go to your profile
- Tap on the three lines in the top right corner.
- Tap on Settings
- Under Privacy, tap on Posts
- Toggle Hide Likes And View Counts to On.
If you want to hide likes on your own posts, you can also do this in Advanced Settings when posting.
Find out more about GoHenry’s parental controls
With GoHenry, you can take control of your child's spending – which is particularly useful if your child or teen regularly spends money online or shops directly from Instagram. The parental controls allow you to set a daily spend limit, block in-app purchases and view your child's transaction history. You can also set instant spend notifications, meaning you'll always be aware of what your child is purchasing when they're using their devices. Find out more about GoHenry parental controls here.
