Instagram

Making an Account Private

A private account limits visibility and interaction to approved followers only.

1. Open your child’s profile
   
   1. Tap the profile picture(bottom-right corner)
   2. Tap the three horizontal lines (top-right)
2. Go to Privacy settings
   
   1. Tap Settings
   2. Tap Privacy
3. Enable Private Account
   
   1. Under Account Privacy, toggle the switch to On (blue)

Reporting Posts and Profiles

Flagging inappropriate content helps keep the platform safer.

To report a post

1. Tap the three dots in the top-right corner of the post
2. Tap Report
3. Select a reason and follow prompts (you may also block or restrict the user)

To report a profile

1. Visit the user’s profile
2. Tap the three dots (top-right)
3. Tap Report… → Tap Report account
4. Choose a reason to complete your report

Reports are anonymous. Urgent risks should be reported to the police or local authorities.

Blocking Users

Blocking prevents a user from contacting or finding your child’s profile.

Block a user from their profile

1. Tap their username
2. Tap the three dots (top-right)
3. Tap Block
4. Choose to block the account or all accounts the person may create

Add a user to the block list

1. Go to your profile → Settings → Privacy
2. Scroll to Blocked accounts
3. Tap +
4. Search and select the user → Tap Block

Limiting Users

Temporarily restrict interactions from unknown or newly-following users.

1. Access the Limits feature
   
   1. Go to Settings → Privacy
   2. Tap Limits → Tap Continue
2. Set limits
   
   1. Choose to limit Accounts not following you or Recent followers
   2. Select a duration (1 day to 4weeks)
   3. Tap Turn on

Restricting an Account

Use Restrict to manage negative interactions without notifying the user.

Restrict via the user’s profile

1. Tap their profile
2. Tap the three dots
3. Tap Restrict

Restrict via settings

1. Go to Settings → Privacy
2. Tap Restricted accounts
3. Search for the user → Tap Restrict

Muting Someone

Mute users to stop seeing their content without unfollowing them.

From their profile

1. Tap Following → Tap Mute
2. Choose to mute Posts, Stories, or both

From your follower list

1. Tap three dots next to a follower
2. Tap Mute

Unfollowing a User

There are several ways to unfollow someone.

From their post

1. Tap the three dots on their post → Tap Unfollow

From their profile

1. Tap their profile → Tap Following → Tap Unfollow

From your following list

1. Tap your profile picture
2. Tap Following
3. Search or scroll → Tap Following next to their name → Tap Unfollow

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Managing Comments

Control who can comment on your child’s posts and block specific users.

Turn off comments before posting

1. While creating a post, tap Advanced Settings
2. Toggle Turn off commenting to On

Block specific users from commenting

1. Go to Settings → Privacy
2. Tap Comments
3. Search for the user → Tap Block next to their name

Blocked users can comment, but your child won’t see the comments.

Filtering and Hiding Comments

Automatically hide offensive content and set custom filters.

1. Enable hidden words
   
   1. Go to Settings → Privacy
   2. Tap Hidden words
   3. Toggle on Hide Comments and Advanced comment filtering
   4. Toggle on Hide Message Requests
2. Add custom words and phrases
   
   1. Tap Manage custom words and phrases
   2. Enter terms to hide → Toggle on Hide Comments and Hide Message Requests

Hiding Likes and Views

Reduce pressure by turning off engagement counts.

1. Access post visibility settings
   
   1. Go to Settings → Privacy →Tap Posts
2. Toggle on Hide like and view counts

You can also manage tagging settings here.

Managing Mentions

Control who can mention your child in posts, comments, or stories.

1. Open mention controls
   
   1. Go to Settings → Privacy →Tap Mentions
2. Choose who can mention them
   
   1. Select Everyone, People you follow, or No one

Story Privacy Settings

Choose who can view or share your child’s Instagram Stories.

1. Manage Story settings
   
   1. Go to Privacy → Tap Story
2. Adjust visibility
   
   1. Tap Hide story from to block individuals
   2. Tap Close friends to share with selected users only
   3. Under Replying and Sharing, adjust who can interact

Note: People hidden from stories also can’t view live videos.

Setting Screen Time Limits

Limit daily app usage or receive time-based reminders.

1. View time spent
   
   1. Tap the three lines (top-right of profile)
   2. Tap Your activity → Tap Time Spent
2. Set limits and reminders
   
   1. Enable Daily use limits or schedule breaks

Managing Notifications

Limit distractions by controlling notification types and frequency.

1. Go to notification settings
   
   1. Tap Settings → Notifications
      
2. Pause notifications
   
   1. Tap Pause all → Choose duration
      
3. Manage categories
   
   1. Adjust alerts for Posts, Stories, Followers, and more

Using Close Friends

Create a list to privately share Stories with select users.

Set up Close Friends

1. Tap the three lines(top-right of profile) → Tap Close Friends
2. Search and add users → Tap the circle beside their name

Setting Up Instagram Supervision

Parents can use Supervision to link their account with their teen’s for better oversight.

Begin setup

1. Go to Settings → Family Center → Tap Supervision
2. Send an invite to your teen’s account

Once accepted, you can:

• Set Daily Time Limits
• Schedule Downtime (e.g., for bedtime or school)
• Monitor who your teen has messaged (past 7 days only)
• Approve requested setting changes
• Track content topics and receive App Break reminders

Teen Accounts

Instagram automatically enables strict privacy settings for users aged 13–17.

These include:

• Private accounts by default
• Limited interaction options
• Parental permission required to reduce privacy settings (for users under 16)

View supervised accounts

1. Tap the three lines → Tap Family Center
2. Select the account → View or adjust safety settings