Instagram has become one of the top most popular social media platforms for the past few years. From being a photo-sharing app, it has evolved into influencing many people along with their business and careers. Some of the exciting features like Instagram reels, Instagram Shops, AR filters, IGTV, live emojis, etc., have made this one popular among young ages.
Celebrities, bloggers and influencers keep their Instagram profiles public to interact with their fans and followers. If you create a new Instagram account, the privacy setting will be public by default. Anyone can view your photos and videos, even not being a follower of your profile.
However, there is a risk of unwanted privacy breaching. So what’s the way out?
Change the account privacy settings and make the profile private rather than keeping it public. It only allows your followers to view your Instagram content. Where public accounts are easy to access, private ones create limitations.
There can be personal or professional reasons which make people interested in checking others’ private Instagram account. If you want to view someone’s private profile, you can send them a follow request.
Apart from that, there are other ways too to see the hidden content of a private account. Even if someone blocks you on Instagram, still it’s possible to see their content.
But how to do that? Don’t worry. This article will tell you tricks about how to view private Instagram.
How to View Private Instagram Account?
1. Send a Follow Request
The only legitimate way to check someone’s private Instagram account is to send them a follow request. If you are a known person, your request may get accepted. Even the person can also follow you back if interested.
Then again, you may get rejected, or the request remains pending. The acceptance completely depends on the relationship between you and the user or their interests.
If that’s the case, you can consider the following tips:
Wait for some days to get accepted. The user may not be active too much on Instagram. Even the request can get unnoticed because the user might not check the “follow requests“.
However, some people like to stay away from strangers. For this reason, you can DM (Direct Message) them. Let them know about you. Tell them why you’re interested in following their account. It might work, and your request gets accepted.
Finally, if you know the person already, remind them of yourself. It’s a good way to get your request accepted and start interacting with the user.
2. Doing a Google Search
Another way to view private Instagram profiles is to search the username (user ID) on Google. If you don’t know it, find them with their real name in the Instagram app. Then, copy-paste the user ID on Google.
Google keeps the digital footprints of a profile. Even if the profile is now private, there are still chances to get a bit of information in Google image search.
You can view their posts back in time when their profile was public. Google stores those contexts of images. At least, you can get to see the profile picture of the account holder.
Moreover, you can get to know about their other unprotected social media profiles like Facebook and Twitter.
3. Create a Fake account
You can create a fake Instagram account to view someone’s private account. However, creating fake accounts is an unethical practice, and it might get you into trouble.
Although if you are really that desperate, then you can use a different email ID or phone number to create another account on Instagram. Frankly speaking, a female person’s account has a high chance of getting a follow request accepted.
- Use a decent girly username and use a profile picture.
- Share some genuine women-oriented posts following the latest trend.
- To make your profile look real, follow some public profiles as well as some trusted friends.
- You can even keep your account’s privacy setting “private” to make your target IG user curious about you.
Once you set up the fake profile, send a follow request to the desired private account. If your profile looks attractive or relevant to that person, they’ll accept it.
If it still doesn’t work, then interact directly in the inbox. Talk about mutual interests in a pleasant tone. Thus, developing trust may drive the person to add you to the followers’ list. Even he can follow you back.
Though this method is troublesome, still there’s no guarantee that your request would get accepted. If you still want to try it, do it at your own risk.
4. Using Instagram Viewer Sites: Third-Party App
Trying a third-party application can also help you to see private Instagram profiles. Keep in mind that these apps are not officially related to Instagram. Still, you need to put your Instagram login credentials as well as contact information and sometimes credit card details to log into such third-party apps.
To see private Instagram accounts you can use this sites
- PrivateInsta
- InstaLooker
- InstaRipper
- InstaSpy
- Instagram Private Profile Viewer
Is it really worthy of using these IG viewer tools? Well, if someone has a private account, that means the person wants it to be that way. By using third-party tools, you’re crossing the boundaries.
On the other hand, Instagram’s API doesn’t allow any third-party IG viewer sites to access their user’s private information. Moreover, these links can be a scam and affect your device and can be a threat to your privacy. These sites have shady backgrounds with hidden authorities. Hence, not recommended.
5. Creating Duplicate Account: The Doppelganger
Are you still struggling with how to see private Instagram?
The final way to see a private Instagram account is to create a duplicate account. Go and find that person on Facebook. Check whom he/she interacts with the most. Now create a duplicate profile in that name. Use his/her profile picture and information on that Instagram account. Finally, send follow request to your target.
Facebook has changed its privacy policy, a user can now lock his Facebook profile to prevent public access. Still, you can give this a try.
However, it is not a long-term process. In the social media era, it will take less time to figure out that you are fake. Consequently, the person will report your account and block it.
Plus, creating a duplicate account with someone’s real information can get you into some serious trouble if the person lodges a legal complaint. So, think about all the risks before you take this step.
Public Instagram Account vs. Private Instagram Account
Before proceeding, let’s know the differences between both the public and private Instagram accounts.
As already said, newly created accounts are set to public by default. Anyone who comes across the profile or search by the name can access their content. It’s also possible to interact with the account owner by leaving comments on the posts or using the Direct Message option.
In fact, some accounts buy IG followers to get more exposure. Follower count is like a benchmark of success. So the more followers, the more it becomes popular.
Google, including other third-party searches, can also help you to reach a public Instagram profile. Even you can get to see the posted pictures on Google image searches if the Instagram content is public.
On the contrary, viewing a private profile is challenging. Some people are interested in making random friends on Instagram, where some love privacy. They only approve those requests whom they know, or the content sounds relevant. Thus, their profiles are only visible to their followers. If someone wants to keep unwanted people away, it’s better to make the personal Instagram profile private.
A private Instagram account ensures 95% of privacy. Hence, more control on the account visibility. It means without your approval, neither can anyone view or comment on your posts, nor can they send you a direct message.
How To Make An Instagram Account Private?
It’s easy. Follow the steps below to make your Instagram account private.
- Open your Instagram account.
- Click on your profile picture at the bottom right corner.
- At the top right corner, click on the three bars—tap Settings from the bottom. The fourth option is Privacy. Open it.
- Swipe the button to enable it.
- Switch to private.
You can turn it back on to “public” in the same way.
Conclusions
In 2021, almost every social media profile has the feature to share users’ personal photos, videos, texts, etc. Some people choose to keep their activities public, and the rest decide to stay private. The same feature works for Instagram users as well.
It is natural to be curious about someone’s private account. Parents often need to check their children’s accounts for security purposes. There are people who loves to spy on a person they like.
Though some unethical steps are there in this article, now you are familiar with the methods and the risks of using them.
Take a bold and legal step and send them a follow request right away. Or else, send them a direct message on Instagram to let them know about you. Be confident and polite; they will surely accept your request to build a connection.