Instagram is introducing new tools and protective measures to shield its users from unwanted interactions. These tools aim to give users more control over spam and bot-generated content in their feeds. The roll-out of these new features will occur gradually over the coming weeks.
Instagram has improved its automatic spam detection in areas such as unwanted comments, tags, story views, and fake followers. Users can now bulk delete these, including followers and unwanted tags.
All spam or suspected bot accounts are filtered into a separate inbox for review. Users can add accounts they deem authentic to their following list, while unwanted accounts will be removed within 30 days.
Users can simply click the “Delete All” button to remove all spam requests or tags.
Instagram already has the “Hidden Words” tool, introduced in 2021, which filters messages and comments containing selected words. However, this does not eliminate all spam as it only filters specific words. Instagram is updating its “Advanced Comment Filtering” tool to remove suspected unwanted comments. The platform is also experimenting with hiding story views that may be undesirable to reduce unwanted user interaction.
Beyond limiting spam, Instagram is also taking bold steps regarding issues affecting content. A new feature sends in-app notifications to users if any of their posts conflict with Instagram’s content policies. This notification aims to help users avoid repeating the same mistakes.