Instagram will give you more information about accounts with large followings, accept applications for verification, and add support for third-party authenticator apps.<\/b>
\nInstagram today announced a trio of updates intended to discourage trolls, stem misinformation, and make the platform a little safer.
For starters, a new feature will give you more information about accounts with large followings, so you can more easily evaluate whether you should trust them. Just go to their Profile, tap the \u00ab\u00a0\u2026\u00a0\u00bb menu button, then select \u00ab\u00a0About this Account.\u00a0\u00bb
You’ll see the date they joined Instagram, the country where the account is located, accounts with shared followers, any username changes they have made in the last year, and any ads they have running. If the account looks sketchy, report it. Facebook tested a similar feature this summer on its Messenger app.
\u00ab\u00a0Our community has told us that it’s important to them to have a deeper understanding of accounts that reach many people on Instagram, particularly when those accounts are sharing information related to current events, political or social causes,\u00a0\u00bb Instagram co-founder and CTO Mike Krieger wrote in a Tuesday blog post .
Instagram plans to roll out this feature \u00ab\u00a0in the coming weeks.\u00a0\u00bb
Meanwhile, taking a cue from Twitter, Instagram will now be accepting applications from users who wish to have their account verified with a blue checkmark badge. To access the verification request form, go to your profile, tap the menu icon, select \u00ab\u00a0Settings\u00a0\u00bb at the bottom, then choose \u00ab\u00a0Request Verification.\u00a0\u00bb
\u00ab\u00a0Once your request has been reviewed, you will receive a notification confirming or declining your request in the notifications tab,\u00a0\u00bb Krieger explained. He warned that \u00ab\u00a0Instagram will never request payment for verification or reach out to ask you to confirm your verification.\u00a0\u00bb
Finally, Instagram is adding support for third-party authenticator apps, which can make it easier to log in when you have two-factor authentication enabled. This security feature will be available to all users \u00ab\u00a0in the coming weeks;\u00a0\u00bb to try it out, go to your profile, tap the menu icon, scroll down and select \u00ab\u00a0Settings,\u00a0\u00bb choose \u00ab\u00a0Two-Factor Authentication,\u00a0\u00bb and select \u00ab\u00a0Authentication App\u00a0\u00bb as your preferred authentication method.
Then, if you already have an authenticator app such as Duo Mobile, Instagram will automatically send a login code to it. From there, enter the code on Instagram, and you should be good to go. If you don’t already have an authenticator app, Instagram will send you to the App Store or Google Play, where you’ll be able to download one.
\u00ab\u00a0Our mission is to bring you closer to the people and things you love,\u00a0\u00bb Krieger wrote. \u00ab\u00a0That closeness can only happen if Instagram is a safe place. Keeping people with bad intentions off our platform is incredibly important to me. That means trying to make sure the people you follow and the accounts you interact with are who they say they are, and stopping bad actors before they cause harm.\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n

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