{"id":684256,"date":"2025-08-10T01:40:20","date_gmt":"2025-08-09T22:40:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/new-instagram-location-sharing-feature-sparks-privacy-fears\/"},"modified":"2025-08-10T01:40:20","modified_gmt":"2025-08-09T22:40:20","slug":"new-instagram-location-sharing-feature-sparks-privacy-fears","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/new-instagram-location-sharing-feature-sparks-privacy-fears\/","title":{"rendered":"New Instagram location sharing feature sparks privacy fears"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Instagram says its new feature allowing users to share locations in real time is off by default, meaning people have to opt-in.
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Instagram users are warning about a new location sharing feature, fearing that the hugely popular app<\/a> could be putting people in danger by revealing their whereabouts without their knowledge.<\/p>\n

The Meta-owned image sharing platform added an option on Wednesday which shares locations using an Instagram map, similar to a feature rival Snapchat has offered since 2017.<\/p>\n

Some users have since been shocked to discover that their location was being shared, viral posts have shown.<\/p>\n

“Mine was turned on and my home address was showing for all of my followers to see,” Instagram user Lindsey Bell wrote in reply to a warning posted by “Bachelor” reality television personality Kelley Flanagan to her 300,000 TikTok followers.<\/p>\n

“Turned it off immedia<\/a>tely once I knew but had me feeling absolutely sick about it.”<\/p>\n

In a TikTok video, Flanagan called Instagram’s new location sharing feature “dangerous” and gave step-by-step instructions on how to make sure it is turned off.<\/p>\n

Instagram chief Adam Mosseri fired off a post on Meta-owned Threads stressing that Instagram location sharing is off by default, meaning users need to opt in for it to be active.<\/p>\n

“Quick Friend Map clarification, your location will only be shared if you decide to share it, and if you do, it can only be shared with a limited group of people you choose,” Mosseri wrote.<\/p>\n

“To start, location sharing is completely off.”<\/p>\n

The feature was added as a way for friends to better connect with one another, sharing posts from “cool spots,” Instagram said in a blog post.<\/p>\n

Users can be selective regarding who they share locations with, and can turn it off whenever they wish, according to Instagram.<\/p>\n

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Wariness regarding whether Instagram is watching out for user privacy comes just a week after a federal jury in San Francisco sided with women who accused Meta of exploiting health data gathered by the Flo app, which tracks menstruation and efforts to get pregnant.<\/p>\n

A jury concluded that Meta used women’s sensitive health data to better target money-making ads, according to law firm Labaton Keller Sucharow, which represented the plaintiffs.<\/p>\n

Evidence at trial showed Meta was aware it was getting confidential health data from the third-party app, and that some employees appeared to mock the nature of the information, the law firm contended.<\/p>\n

“This case was about more than just data\u2014it was about dignity, trust, and accountability,” lead attorney Carol Villegas said in a blog post.<\/p>\n

Damages in the suit have yet to be determined.<\/p>\n

\n \u00a9 2025 AFP\n <\/p>\n

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\n Citation<\/strong>:
\n New Instagram location sharing feature sparks privacy fears (2025, August 9)
\n retrieved 9 August 2025
\n from https:\/\/techxplore.com\/news<\/a>\/2025-08-instagram-feature-privacy.html\n <\/p>\n

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