Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms all over the world these days. Owned by Facebook, Instagram is a visual platform for sharing photos and videos. It’s also great for you to keep in touch with your family, friends, or people whom you admire, and a cool place to find inspiration and create visual content. Screenshotting is a great way to save interesting content that you come across on Instagram. And many people wonder what is new in the Instagram screenshot notification in 2021. Let’s find out in this guide!
You may come across a funny story of your best friend then want to save a snap or screenshot a great item from one of your favorite Instagram business accounts. Maybe your friend sent you a disappearing direct message but you want to save it. Regardless of what the reason is, it’s normal to screenshot content on Instagram or other social media platforms.
Despite this, many people still need to know whether Instagram sends notifications when they take a screenshot or not. In this guide, we will show you what Instagram will do if you take screenshot content on this platform.
Screenshot an Instagram Story or Post
Instagram Story is one of the most favorite functions on this platform. It includes temporary photos or videos that will disappear after 24 hours. So, it’s natural when you want to screenshot the interesting stories as you can not save them like Instagram posts. Does Instagram notify the users that you have done this?
In February 2018, Instagram did launch a function that gave its users notification when their stories were screenshotted. However, this update was rolled back after a few months they received a lot of backlashes.
These days, Instagram does not give its users notification when you screenshot their stories, posts, or most other content. These content include other user’ profile, feed, story, posts, or even permanent direct message (DM) threads.
So, don’t worry! You can screenshot all the visible photos and videos on your Explore page and personal feed and Instagram won’t notify the owners of this content.
There is an exception that you should know. Instagram will notify people when you screenshot a disappearing photo or video in DM that you receive from others.
Let’s talk more about Direct messages in the next part of this guide!
Screenshot Content in Direct Messages
Will Instagram notify people when you screenshot a private message? It depends on which type of message that you screenshot.
In terms of non-disappearing content in your direct messages, there will no notifications when they were screenshotted. So, you can easily screenshot the conversations in your DM thread without anyone knowing.
However, there are disappearing messages that Instagram will give notifications when screenshotted. Instagram users can send disappearing content through a direct message. These photos or videos will disappear once the recipient has opened and viewed them. You can not access your camera roll while using the disappearing mode features, they are live photos and videos.
Instagram regularly updates its new rules. So, it’s better to take a look at Instagram’s screenshot notification policy. Keep yourself up to date!
How Does Instagram Notify Users of DM Screenshots?
Instagram will send you a popup notification when someone tries to screenshot one of the disappearing photos or videos sent in your DM threads. In this notification, Instagram will mention the username of this person who took a screenshot.
You will also see a small indicator next to the screenshotted photos. Let’s take a look at the picture below, a small starburst icon will appear next to the disappearing photo that was screenshotted.
Unfortunately, there is no way to get rid of this icon. So, right when someone screenshots that photo or video, you will find out. And when you do it, the person who sent this content will surely know.
How To Avoid Being Caught When You Screenshot Instagram Content
There are some ways to avoid detection when you screenshot content on Instagram. You should know these things to not feel embarrassed when someone finds out that you screenshot their content. Or in some cases, you will protect yourself from a bad situation when someone tries to take a screenshot of your important information.
Airplane mode
One of the main methods to avoid being caught screenshotting is to turn on Airplane Mode on your phone. When you are in Airplane mode, you can take a screenshot without Instagram sends a notification.
However, as your phone will be offline, you are not able to view more posts or stories. So, if you need to take many screenshots, it’s not a great way.
Web browser
There is no way for Instagram to detect people taking screenshots on laptop or desktop browsers. So, access Instagram through your desktop or laptop web browser if you want to do so.
Another smartphone camera or device
You can also use another smartphone or camera to take pictures of your screen. Of course, it won’t end up with a high-quality image, but this is the safeties way to avoid any notifications from Instagram.
Third-Party Applications
Disclaim! While it isn’t illegal to use third-party apps which allow you to screenshot and save the disappearing content anonymously, it’s essential to make sure that they do not violate Instagram’s Terms of Service.
So now, you know some tricks to take screenshots of disappearing content on Instagram. Be careful while sharing important or sensitive content using social media platforms like Instagram to protect yourself from bad intentions.
Conclusion
Here is our short answer to the questions about the Instagram screenshot notification in 2021. You can screenshot almost all content on Instagram, except for disappearing photos or videos sent in a private DM thread. And everyone in this conversation will know if this content is screenshotted.