HOW TO MAKE YOUR INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT PRIVATE

We’ve all been told over and over: make sure your social accounts are locked down and private, or at the very least, clean and secure of any compromising information and images. It’s important to ensure that your account is both private and safe as this can harm your job or school prospects. It you’re new to Instagram—or if it’s been a while since you created your account—you might be unsure of how to change the privacy settings on your account to protect your information. Let’s take a look. We’ll be using the iOS version of the app in our screenshots below, but the Android version is near-identical to the Apple version of the app.

Start by opening the app, either from your home screen (iOS) or your app drawer (Android). The app will open up on the homepage for Instagram, showing a collection of posts and shares from your followed friends. Along the bottom of the app, you’ll find five icons for adding photos, viewing posts, and more. Tap on the profile icon on the bottom of the tab. On iOS, this shows your profile picture taken from Instagram. On Android, this shows a basic profile icon, a silhouette of a person. This will load your own profile, along with a few additional options.

From this display, you’ll see a few icons along the top of your screen. On iOS, look for the gear icon in the top right corner, which will load into your settings automatically. Android’s design is a little different, with a triple-dotted menu button in the top-right corner of the display. Unlike other Android apps, this will also load directly into Instagram’s options menu instead of loading a smaller settings list.

Once you’re inside Instagram’s settings menu, you’ll see a long list of options. It’s here where you’ll find options for two-factor authentication, the ability to hide your Instagram Story, and block users. But above all, the most important option here is “Private Account,” which you’ll find at the bottom of the account settings options on this page before the traditional settings menu begins. Instagram warns below this switch that only people you approve can see your photos and videos while mentioning that your existing followers won’t be affected by the switch. If you’re trying to get rid of a specific user that already follows you, you’ll have to block them.