How to Delete Your Instagram Account Permanently?
While it’s fun to occasionally share pictures of your food or a snap from your latest vacation with your Instagram audience, you’re also sacrificing your online privacy in the process.
Sure, it is an excellent way to interact with millions of users and follow the lives of your favorite celebrities and sports personalities, but Instagram can drain your privacy even more quickly than Twitter and other social networks. Because you’re sharing pictures (which give away more information), and not character limited posts and tweets.
If you want to stop Instagram from destroying your online privacy, then our advice is that you should know how to delete your Instagram account.
Note that once you’ve deleted your Instagram account, there’s no way that you can retrieve it. This means that your photos, likes, comments, and any other stuff will be lost forever. So think twice before you proceed to delete your Instagram account.
Jump to…
- Instagram’s Privacy Policy
- Is Instagram Safe?
- How to Permanently Delete Your Instagram Account?
- How to Temporary Disable Your Instagram Account?
- Do More to Protect Your Internet Privacy
Instagram’s Privacy Policy
How private is Instagram? Are they collecting any information besides the photos that you’re posting?
Like Facebook, Instagram isn’t privacy friendly at all. It does collect your private information and uses this information to share targeted ads, and earn money on your behalf. Instagram is a free social network platform, and just like any other free social network platform, you’re their product!
These are the types of information that Instagram collects:
- Your basic account information: your name, phone number, username, password, and email address.
- Your content information: any photos, comments, and other content that you post on Instagram.
- Your communications information: any communications between you and Instagram, which may include service emails and account notices.
- Your contacts information: if you use Instagram’s “Find Friends” feature, Instagram will look through your contacts list and your social media accounts so it can recommend other Instagram users you might know.
- Your device information: Instagram can use “device identifiers” to learn the type of device you’re using to access their service.
- Your usage information: Instagram can use cookies to monitor how you’re using their service.
After collecting your information, Instagram may use it in the following ways:
- Advertising: Instagram uses the gathered information to show you targeted ads.
- Sharing to third parties: Since Instagram works with multiple third-parties, it is possible for them to share user data with companies they are legally a part of (Facebook, WhatsApp) and third-party advertising partners. Instagram may also be required to submit information to legal authorities so it can aid in case of an investigation.
- Product testing: Instagram may also use the information it collects to help them develop new products and services through which they can start earning in the future.
Is Instagram Safe?
Apparently, Instagram is safe for use. However, the platform compromises your privacy and security making you vulnerable to external threats by hackers and cybercriminals. For e.g. a hacker can learn a lot more about you by checking out your pictures on Instagram. They can use this information to harm you and hack into your accounts or devices.
Cyberstalkers also use this information to monitor your daily activities and gather enough information so they can blackmail you or harm you in any manner.
You can read more about Instagram and its privacy policy here.
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By submitting form you agree to our Privacy PolicyHow to Permanently Delete Your Instagram Account?
Step 1: Access the delete Instagram account page. Now, log in to your Instagram account via the web and not the app.
Step 2: Next to “Why are you deleting your account,” select the reason why you wish to delete your Instagram account from the options in the drop-down.
Step 3: Enter your password and then click on “Permanently delete my account.”
How to Temporary Disable Your Instagram Account?
You may not want to disable your Instagram account permanently for now. If so, you can delete your Instagram account temporarily by following these steps:
Step 1: Log in to your Instagram account from its website via browser as your account cannot be disabled through the app.
Step 2: Next, click “Edit Profile.”
Step 3: Head over to ‘Delete Your Account’
Step 4: Click “Temporarily disable my account” at the bottom of the profile edits screen.
Do More to Protect Your Internet Privacy
Deleting your Instagram account may not be enough to enhance your privacy. If you want to step up your online privacy game, we suggest that you subscribe to PureVPN.
PureVPN encrypts your online communications, making it impossible for anyone to intercept or monitor your online communications. With 750+ servers in 141 countries equipped with the best security features, PureVPN gives you the security and privacy that you need. It also encrypts your data and lets you browse at super-fast speeds.