Instagram might be leaking your location. Here’s how to check
Earlier this summer, Instagram launched a new feature called Maps. The idea: You and other friends can share your location in real time, in what Meta calls a “new, lightweight way to connect.”
(Having lived through the era of Foursquare and Yelp check-ins, I’m cynical about companies wanting people to share their locations for social purposes—it’s just a data treasure trove for monetization.)
Maps is an optional feature—you have to choose to turn it on. You also can only share with friends (defined as “followers you follow back”), Close Friends, Only Selected Friends, or no one.
But I nearly turned on location sharing through Maps by accident at launch, and it seems like I wasn’t the only one. A friend recently mentioned not knowing it was enabled. We both also have “friends” on Instagram that we don’t know very well.
So, in theory, this new feature seems more private. In practice, you can accidentally end up sharing your real-time whereabouts with people you never intended to.
Here’s how to check:
- Open the Instagram app.
- Open your messages.
- At the top of the screen, you’ll see a globe icon called Map.
- If you’re not sharing, you should see a small red icon and the status message Not sharing. Don’t see these indicators? So long as location sharing for the app is off, you should still be locked down.
I was saved from accidental sharing by Instagram’s lack of location sharing permissions—I had disabled those for the app previously. It slowed me down and made me realize what the app was actually asking for. I had initially assumed Instagram had asked who I’d be comfortable sharing my location info with for posts.
Meta and a lack of privacy isn’t surprising, but it’s a good reminder to periodically check your settings in services and apps. You never know what new thing might be betraying your privacy.
