Solved: ‘We’re Removing Inauthentic Likes and Follows’ Instagram
If you got an Instagram in-app notification that says:
“It looks like you shared your password with a service to help you get more likes followers, which goes against our community guidelines” or “It looks like you may have shared your username and password with an app offering followers or likes. We’re removing activity like new followers from these apps to protect our community from inauthentic activity. Change your password to stop them from accessing your account.” and their variations, you are not alone.
After recent updates to the Instagram algorithm, tens of millions of Instagram profiles started seeing this automated message, whether they indeed participated in inauthentic activities or not.
Why am I seeing this message?
Instagram, over years, has been cracking down on fake follower networks and “inauthentic” activity happening on their platform.
The Facebook-owned platform has been taking down fake accounts since at least 2014 but only recently has been publicly stating about removing fake likes and follows.
The main reason? Money.
Instagram is trying to protect their ad revenue - in simple words, if you want to grow followers on Instagram, they want you to spend money on their ads, not on 3rd party services.
This comes as no surprise since in the last few years Facebook has been investing heavily their resources into building advertising back-end on Instagram.
However, many users are not happy with this course of action as this forces them to pay even more for advertising to stay on top of the organic reach that is being trimmed every year.
And as our research shows that IG ads don’t perform well for follower growth.
What are “inauthentic Likes and Follows”?
Instagram mentions in their press release that they are reducing inauthentic activity. But what exactly this “inauthentic activity” is?
- likes that were purchased to make the post appear more popular
- followers that were purchased in bulk to make the account appear more popular
- like and follow actions that were posted via a bot
- comments that were automatically made and posted via a bot
What activity is NOT considered as “inauthentic”?
- like and follow actions done manually and selectively (by you or someone in charge of your account: social media manager, agency, etc.)
- non-automated, manually written & sent Instagram direct messages
- non-automated, manually viewed Instagram stories
Do I risk my account getting banned?
NO, you don’t risk your account getting banned if you:
- do all the activity manually and just overdose with the follow or like actions
- use organic Instagram growth service or social media manager to grow your account manually
Instagram might still temporarily limit some of the functions on your Instagram account like follow or like actions with “Action Blocked” message. These blocks usually don’t last long.
YES, there is a moderate to high risk of getting your account banned if:
- you purchased bulk followers
- you use bots and software solutions that promise follower growth
- you use mobile games and apps that promise follower growth
Will I lose the followers I’ve earned?
If you did not purchase these followers, you won’t lose any. Instagram is only after FAKE followers, not real ones.
How to solve it?
The most important is: if you participate in purchasing followers or using bots, immediately stop those activities.
Here are known ways to unblock the “Action Blocked” message:
- stop running bot/software solutions (if you do)
- give yourself a break from follow and like activities for at least 72 hours
- switch to mobile data
- link your Instagram account with Facebook
Let’s go into more details for each method:
1. Stop bots
If you have been running any bot/software to automate your Instagram - stop it. Instagram is aware of the bot activity which, after many Instagram updates, is easy to detect these days. Either invest time to grow your account manually or delegate it to a dedicated growth service that does not rely on software solutions.
2. Take a break
Since overdosing activity on your Instagram will be the most common reason why you received an “Action Blocked” message, it’s common sense that taking a break from following, liking, and commenting is a good way to get rid of the “Action Blocked” error.
We recommend stopping all activities at least for 72 hours although in some cases, the block might last longer, up to 5-7 days.
3. Switch to mobile data
No matter whether or not you are accessing your Instagram profile via an Instagram app on your phone or Instagram website on your computer, if you connect to the Internet via WiFi at home or your work, switch to your mobile network. So:
- If you are on mobile, switch to your 4G/5G.
- If you are on a computer, enable hotspot on your phone and connect your computer to this hotspot network.
Likely is, Instagram flagged or banned your home or work IP, so switching to mobile data might help.
4. Link Instagram with Facebook
If you haven’t done so yet, try to connect your personal or business Instagram account with your brand’s Facebook account.
This way, you are showing Instagram more credibility that indeed you are a real person using an account and not a bot. Often, Instagram accounts that were machine-made or are machine-maintained are not associated with any Facebook accounts, and Instagram might see it as a trust issue.
See how to link your Instagram with Facebook guide to learn how to do it efficiently.
How to Prevent “We’re removing inauthentic likes and follows” Message
As Instagram’s algorithm constantly changes, with each update, both the causes why you are getting blocked and the ways to avoid might change.
As of today, these are confirmed ways to prevent getting blocked:
1. Use only organic growth services
If you have been using 3rd party service, make sure you don’t use bots and software solutions and instead, use only organic Instagram service or social media agency where the actions are completed manually, not automatically. This way, it will look just like you would do it yourself.
2. Don’t complete too many actions
If you are on a follow spree, slow down.
Although it might be tempting to follow many users at once and then forget about it, this way you are more likely to get your actions blocked on Instagram.
Removing Inauthentic Likes and Follows: Conclusion
We know how frustrating it can be to run into issues with your social media profile you poured so much time and energy.
However, with a bit of planning and careful selection of activities, you can enjoy the steady and safe growth of your Instagram account.
Karen is a senior technical writer and copywriter at Hypegrowth. Her area of expertize are social media apps and new media.