tech
May 8, 2026
Tough blow on Instagram: fake accounts were eliminated and users lose millions of followers
Instagram has become one of the favorite social networks for millions of internet users worldwide, making it one of the most famous applications within current virtual ecosystems.
TL;DR
- Instagram is actively removing hundreds of bot farms and inactive accounts.
- Users have reported a significant decrease in their follower count from May 5th to 7th.
- This purge is attributed to pressure from international regulators and child safety organizations.
- The elimination of bot accounts allows Meta to scan chats for illegal content, scams, and harassment.
- Major celebrities like Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylie Jenner, Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift, and Justin Bieber have lost millions of followers.
- Instagram will also be disabling end-to-end encryption support for direct messages.