{
  "slug": "instagram",
  "name": "Instagram",
  "maker": "Meta",
  "category": "chats",
  "verdict": "n",
  "answer": "No. Meta can read your Instagram DMs. Instagram stopped offering end-to-end encrypted chats on 8 May 2026.",
  "title": "Are Instagram DMs encrypted? Not since May 2026",
  "description": "Meta can read Instagram DMs, group chats and calls. Instagram ended its opt-in end-to-end encryption on 8 May 2026. Checked at the source.",
  "parts": [
    {
      "key": "msg",
      "status": "n",
      "words": "Meta can read it",
      "note": "Instagram ended end-to-end encrypted chats on 8 May 2026, and it had only ever been an opt-in choice.",
      "sources": [
        1,
        2
      ],
      "label": "Messages"
    },
    {
      "key": "grp",
      "status": "n",
      "words": "Meta can read it",
      "note": "Group chats aren't sealed either.",
      "sources": [
        1
      ],
      "label": "Group chats"
    },
    {
      "key": "call",
      "status": "n",
      "words": "Meta can read it",
      "note": "With end-to-end encryption gone, calls in Instagram chats aren't sealed against Meta.",
      "sources": [
        1
      ],
      "label": "Calls"
    },
    {
      "key": "bak",
      "status": "n",
      "words": "Meta can read it",
      "note": "Your chat history is kept on Meta's servers, and Meta's privacy policy lists the messages you send among what it collects.",
      "sources": [
        3
      ],
      "label": "Backups"
    },
    {
      "key": "pq",
      "status": "x",
      "words": "Not yet",
      "note": "Instagram chats have no end-to-end encryption, and no post-quantum protection was announced as of 25 October 2026.",
      "sources": [
        1
      ],
      "label": "Post-quantum"
    }
  ],
  "extra_parts": [],
  "keys": "Meta. Since 8 May 2026 Instagram has no end-to-end encryption, so your DMs aren't sealed against Meta.",
  "can_see": "Your messages and what's in them, who you message and when, and your profile and activity, as Meta's privacy policy lists.",
  "business": null,
  "fix": null,
  "fix_line": null,
  "sections": [
    {
      "id": "are-instagram-dms-end-to-end-encrypted",
      "q": "Are Instagram DMs end-to-end encrypted?",
      "a": "No. Instagram says end-to-end encrypted messaging is no longer supported as of 8 May 2026 [1]. Meta announced the change in March 2026, saying very few people were turning the option on [2].\n\nThe option was always opt-in, so most Instagram chats were never sealed. Meta now points people who want sealed chats to WhatsApp [1][2]."
    },
    {
      "id": "can-meta-read-my-instagram-messages",
      "q": "Can Meta read my Instagram messages?",
      "a": "Yes. Instagram DMs aren't end-to-end encrypted, and Meta's privacy policy lists the messages you send among the information it collects [1][3].\n\nMeta says it doesn't use the content of personal messages to pick ads for you [4]. Chats with businesses and with Meta AI don't count as personal messages [4]."
    },
    {
      "id": "old-encrypted-instagram-chats",
      "q": "What happened to my old encrypted Instagram chats?",
      "a": "If you had encrypted chats, Instagram says you'll see instructions for downloading any messages or media you want to keep [1]. On an older version of the app, you may need to update it first [1].\n\nThere's no setting to seal new Instagram chats [1]."
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "End-to-end encryption on Instagram, Instagram Help Center",
      "publisher": "Meta",
      "url": "https://help.instagram.com/491565145294150",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Testing End-to-End Encrypted Backups and More on Messenger (updated 9 March 2026)",
      "publisher": "Meta",
      "url": "https://about.fb.com/news/2022/08/testing-end-to-end-encrypted-backups-and-more-on-messenger/",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "Meta Privacy Policy (effective 23 July 2026)",
      "publisher": "Meta",
      "url": "https://www.facebook.com/privacy/policy/",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    },
    {
      "title": "About personal messages on Messenger, Facebook and Instagram",
      "publisher": "Meta",
      "url": "https://www.facebook.com/help/1052363542585052",
      "read": "2026-10-25"
    }
  ],
  "changes": [
    {
      "date": "2026-10-25",
      "text": "First published."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "messenger",
    "whatsapp",
    "snapchat",
    "tiktok",
    "x"
  ],
  "url": "https://isitencrypted.com/instagram/",
  "checked": "2026-10-25"
}