What is Shadowban on Instagram?

Shadowban is a process by which Instagram penalizes certain accounts in a way that makes them practically invisible to their subscribers and other Instagram users.

Let’s look back. The Instagram news feed was ordered strictly by publication date, meaning that the last posts published were the first to appear in the feed. However, since June 2016, Instagram began to implement different algorithms to identify accounts that were violating its Conditions and Terms of Use and as a result, it began to ban these users.

The main symptom of Shadowban is that it makes your account practically invisible, and inhibits the possibility of reaching new users. Specifically, it penalizes your content so that it does not appear in the search results of the hashtags you use, which represents a progressive loss of engagement.

How do I know if I have been a victim of Shadowban?

Simply ask someone who does not follow you to search for your username on Instagram, if you enter the first letters, for example u/insta, and in the results, your account does not appear first and you have to enter the full username so that it appears, for example u/instagram So your account is in shadowban, this means that your visibility will be reduced by up to 90%,

The other way to quickly see if you are shadowban is by checking your account status, if you have alerts and notices it means that your account will be repressed.

To check your account status, tap “Settings,” “Account,” then “Account Status.”

well everything has a solution and here we will explain the different solutions.

Why am I a victim of Shadowban?

In its last update, Instagram implemented the account center to show you possible reasons why they will reduce the visibility of your account, however there are other reasons that are not specified here, I will detail them.

The use of software that violates Instagram’s terms of Use

This includes the use of audience growth bots such as Instagress and MassPlanner (both have been removed), Social Envy or Bigbangram. Additionally, Instagram can Shadowban you if you use software that posts for you, such as Onlypult and Schedugram. Alternatively, there is another type of software that does not violate Instagram’s Terms of Use and Conditions and instead of posting for you, they function as a reminder. Finally, if you have multiple Instagram accounts and you use automation on one of them, this can affect the others because they share the IP address.

There are usage limits that, if exceeded, can cause Shadowban. Try to avoid 150 likes and 60 comments and follow/unfollow per hour.
The use of a banned hashtag

These are hashtags that Instagram blocks to prevent misuse. Please note that using one of these hashtags may result in your post being completely banned. To find out if you are using banned hashtags, do a search, scroll down and see if this message appears. If this is the case, avoid using that hashtag. The #skype hashtag is currently an example of a banned hashtag.

Your account is being continually reported
The reported accounts quickly attract the attention of Instagram and cause them to be analyzed in detail to identify if they are violating the Conditions of Use of the social network, such as spam, infringing copyright, inappropriate content, etc.

How do I get back to normal if I am a victim of Shadowban?

Stop using software that violates Instagram Terms of Use
Bots, automation programs, etc. As we have mentioned before, the use of this type of software, although it saves time and makes work easier, causes Shadowban. Avoid its use. Also, remove access from external applications to your Instagram account. To do this, access Instagram through the web, go to “Edit your profile” and in “Authorized applications”, revoke access to each and every one of them. It should appear like this:

Remove banned hashtags from your posts
It can be tedious, but it is a worthwhile job: locate your hashtags and go one by one checking if they have been banned or not. If not, remove it from your post and make sure you don’t use it again.

Take a 48-hour break
After following the steps above, stop posting, liking or commenting for 48 hours (including logging into your account). Some users claim that this gives your account a break and eliminates the Shadowban. After this time, you can return to using Instagram normally.

Don’t look for the loopholes on Instagram

Using the social network normally is a guarantee to avoid Shadowban. An example of misuse of the platform is including the 30 hashtags

allowed and add another 30 more in the first comment. This may seem to work, but it may set off alarm bells.

Report the problem to Instagram
Through the application you can report that something is not working well. Go to your profile, and select the Preferences icon. Then look for the Report a Problem section and explain your case in detail. There are no guarantees that they will give you an answer, but it is worth trying.

Change your Personal Business Account
It is said that the Shadowban has reasons beyond restricting improper use of the platform and is that, like Facebook, the social network is known for limiting the reach and engagement of company accounts to force its users to buy advertising. . By returning to a personal profile again you could potentially distance yourself from this practice.

Finally, at a conference of goal advisors with our company, they told us that if an account has a shadowban, it must last 3 months without committing any offense for it to return to normal.

Antonio Gonales – Instagram Support & Social Media Expert.