Instagram is the most popular and favorite social media app. Almost all kinds of businesses, influencers, and celebrities have an account on Instagram. But with these original accounts, some fake and bot accounts also exist. These fake IG accounts are the ones that create spam on Instagram.
They send promotional messages and leave annoying comments to worsen your Instagram experience. But don’t worry; you will find a solution to this problem in this blog.
Keep reading to learn how to get rid of spam on Instagram and make your IG experience more positive and peaceful!
What is Spam on Instagram?
Have you ever been scrolling through your Instagram feed and suddenly seen a random comment or bulk message that screams for your attention? That’s spam on Instagram.
Simply put, it’s any uninvited and unwanted interaction meant to promote something you didn’t ask for or annoy you without any reason.
In it, the random Instagram account/user sends you bulk messages, leaves spammy comments on your posts, or keeps tagging you in random posts.
You can recognize these IG spam accounts and bots easily, as they don’t have a lot of followers, have random user names and posts on their feed, and have few likes on posts.
Types of Spam on Instagram
Spam on Instagram comes in various forms, each with its own tricks to lure you in.
Let’s discuss the most common types:
1. Follow Spam: The IG fake accounts follow you and hope you’ll follow back. They often have generic usernames, stolen profile pictures, and few (or suspicious-looking) posts.
2. Phishing Message Spam: These sneaky Instagram phishing messages pretend to be from Instagram, celebrities, or other companies. They ask for your personal information, like passwords and credit card details, or try to trick you into clicking suspicious links.
3. Comment Spam: This is the most common type, where bots or accounts leave generic, irrelevant comments on your posts. Like “Get free followers!” or “DM for collab!” or “Promote this post on… account”, etc. They aim to boost engagement on their own accounts or promote unrelated products.
How to Get Rid of Instagram Spam
Let’s learn how you can eliminate various types of spam on Instagram.
1. Get Rid of Instagram Spam Followers
This is one of the worst kinds of spam on Instagram. These Instagram bot accounts follow you randomly and post inappropriate content and posts that clutter up your Instagram feed. Don’t worry!
Here are three easy steps you can take right now to get rid of those spam followers for good.
1. Set Your Account to Private
The first step to stop spam followers from following you is to set your Instagram account to private. With a private account, when you get requests from various accounts, you can decide who can follow you and be your follower.
This way, you can delete follow requests from spammers, let them not follow you, and mess with your vibe on Instagram. To turn your account private, follow these steps:
- Go to your profile on the Instagram app.
- Tap the three lines in the top-right corner.
- Select “Settings & Privacy.”
- Go to “Account Privacy” and turn it on.
Now, anyone wanting to follow you will have to send a request, which you can accept or ignore. Problem solved!
However, setting your account to private might not be a great idea if you’re an influencer, business owner, or brand seeking to attract an audience and gain attention.
But don’t worry; you can follow the steps mentioned below to get rid of spam on Instagram.
2. Report and Block Instagram Spam Followers
To get rid of spam followers and accounts, you can report these fake accounts to Instagram and block them. Here’s how:
- Go to the spammer’s profile.
- Tap the three dots in the top right corner.
- Select “Report” and choose the appropriate reason (e.g., spam, inappropriate content).
- Then, tap “Block” to prevent them from following you ever again.
After these steps, Instagram will check those specific accounts’ credentials and permanently delete them if there are other reports against the accounts.
3. Turn Off Instagram Follow Suggestions
The Instagram algorithm suggests similar accounts you follow and like, but sometimes, these suggestions can be spammy. To disable these IG accounts’ recommendations, go to your profile, open settings, and uncheck the related box.
Also, whenever you follow an account on Instagram, then turn off the similar account suggestions showing along with them, or don’t just randomly follow them.
Moreover, if you don’t want to perform any of the above steps to get rid of Instagram spam followers, then remove them manually from your followers list and report them from coming back. Simple!
2. Get Rid of Spam Comments on Instagram
When you post on your IG account, some spam or bot accounts leave unwanted comments like ‘promote this post on …… IG handle, follow-back, etc.’. Luckily, Instagram provides an inbuilt feature that helps you eliminate these unwanted spam comments under your posts or Instagram Reels.
Follow these steps to stop spam comments on Instagram:
1. Block and Control IG Comments
- Open your profile and tap the three lines in the upper right corner.
- Go to “Settings & privacy”.
- Tap on ‘Comments‘.
- Tap “Block Comments From” to block unwanted comments from specific users.
- You can manually enter usernames and click on ‘Block’ to block comments from those users.
- You can also go to ‘Allow comments from” and choose from whom you want to receive comments.
2. Use Hidden Words to Filter Spam
- Go to the “Settings & Privacy” option and scroll down.
- Tap “Hidden Words” and enable “Hide Comments.”
- Now, scroll down to the custom words, add keywords or phrases commonly found in spam comments (e.g., follow me, free followers, check out, click the link, like for like, etc.), and turn on ‘Hide comments” to hide similar comments.
- You can also enable “Advanced comment filtering” to automatically hide comments containing offensive words, emojis, spam, or scams.
With this method, you can easily filter out comments and eliminate spam comments on Instagram.
3. Report and Delete the Spam Comments
- Slightly tap on a spam comment and choose “Report Comment.“
- This helps Instagram identify and remove similar comments in the future.
- Choose “Delete” to remove the comment from your post.
- Tap “Block” to prevent the user from commenting again on your future posts.
3.Eliminate Spam Tags and Mentions on Instagram
As mentioned earlier, spam on Instagram posts inappropriate and spammy content. But what they do further is tag and mention you under these posts.
But, just like comments, you can eliminate spam tags and mentions on Instagram and maintain a professional account.
Here is how to do it:
- Go to your Instagram profile.
- Click the three horizontal lines in the top right corner.
- Choose “Settings & Privacy” and then “Tags & Mention.“
- Choose who can tag you: “Everyone“, “People you follow“, or “No one“.
- You can also select “Manually approve tags.” This lets you review and accept/reject tags before they appear on your profile.
1. Get Rid of Existing Spam Tags
- Go to your profile settings and then ‘Review tags’ under the “Tags & mention” option.
- Tap “Tagged“.
- Find the spammy post and tap the three dots in the top right corner.
- Select “Tag options” and then “Remove me from the post.”.
- You can also block the user by tapping their username and choosing “Block.”
2. Stop Spam Mentions
- Follow the same steps as in Step 1 and select who can mention you in their posts, captions, comments, and Instagram stories.
4. Get Rid of Spam DMs on Instagram
With so much spam on Instagram, receiving unwanted and annoying DMs or message requests is not new. They could be of any type, from clicking on specific links or promotions to inviting you to follow them or become a business partner or ambassador.
But in reality, they only clutter your inbox, waste your time, and can be downright creepy. But fear not, you can filter your inbox, stop receiving pesky spammy DMs and get rid of them too.
Here’s how to do it:
- Go to “Settings & Privacy” and then “Messages.”
- Under “Message controls,” choose whom you want to receive or don’t want to receive messages.
- You can select “Only your follower” to receive DMs from them. This way, you’ll only see messages that are actually relevant to you.
- Or select ‘don’t receive message requests from other people.’ This way, you won’t receive messages from other IG accounts or spam on Instagram.
You can also use ‘Hidden Words‘ to hide messages containing certain custom words or phrases. Add words or phrases you want to block, and they’ll be hidden from your comments and messages. You can also block and report fake accounts to Instagram.
Wrap-Up
This is a wrap. We hope this step-by-step guide has helped you learn how to get rid of spam on Instagram. By following these simple steps, you’ll be well on your way to a spam-free, positive, and more enjoyable Instagram experience.
Remember, consistency is key! Regularly check your follower list and remove any suspicious accounts. Avoid generic, overused hashtags that attract spam bots. Don’t click on links or reply to messages from suspicious accounts. And if you experience something odd, then report spam to Instagram online and keep the platform safe for everyone.
Use SocialBu to enhance your Instagram experience!
Schedule Instagram posts and Reels, generate IG captions, respond to comments, monitor your hashtags, and analyze your top-performing posts to create an effective content strategy – from one dashboard!
FAQs
Why Am I Getting Spam Accounts on Instagram?
Spam accounts on Instagram are the worst. There are a few reasons why they might be targeting you. It could be simple, like using a weak password or following suspicious accounts. But it also might be because you’re accidentally clicking on shady links. Be careful, don’t share your personal information, change your password, and make your account private if needed!
How Can I Stop Spam on Instagram?
Here are some quick ways to stop spam on Instagram:
- If you’re not a brand or influencer, make your account private. Only approved followers can comment and message you.
- Use “Hidden Words” to filter comments or messages containing specific words or phrases commonly used by spammers.
- Block and report suspicious accounts.
- Use the Instagram report fake account feature to report these spams on Instagram and block them.
- Turn off “Similar Account Suggestions” to avoid attracting spammy followers.
- Avoid using generic hashtags in your Instagram captions. Use targeted hashtags relevant to your content and audience.
What Does a Spam Account Mean on Instagram?
An Instagram spam account is a fake or automated bot account used to send unwanted messages, promote scams, or artificially inflate follower counts. They often have generic usernames, stolen profile pictures, and no original content.