CLAIM
A viral message that threatens to make all posts on social media app Instagram public has left several of its users worried. According to the claim, the users' photos and messages can also be used against them in court cases, under the parent company’s “new rule”.
The message also asks users to repost the warning at least once, failing which the app will use their "photos, as well as the information contained in the profile status".
The Quint also received a query from a reader, asking to check the authenticity of the widely circulated post.
Bollywood stars like Kalki Koechlin and Hazel Keech also shared the post.
WHAT IS THE TRUTH?
Speaking to The Quint, an Instagram spokesperson said, “There is no truth to this post.”
Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, also took to Twitter to clarify that the claim mentioned in the viral post is false.
The post in question also has glaring grammatical and structural consistency errors, something atypical of a big social media platform.
Another version of the post has been circulating on Facebook as well.
The claim made in the Facebook post is false as well.
RECURRING FAKE NEWS
Similar versions of the post have resurfaced online overtime with minor modifications.
Snopes, an American fact checking website, hads debunked the claim way back in 2012.
It was circulated again in 2016.
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