- Meta announced Instagram’s new card function that has many users concerned about their online privacy
- While the new feature is only opt-in, it has not prevented angry users from sharing their thoughts on x and reddit
- If you are one of these users there is a way to make sure your location settings are turned off for the new Instagram card
Instagram Maps is one of the latest additions to the app’s interface, and although it’s only a week since it was rolled out, it hasn’t left the best impression on users – even included.
Along with a number of other features, including a new Friends tab in the wheels side, Instagram Maps is a new feature in the Messages section that allows you to share your real-time location with friends. It looks like a lot of snap cards that have been around for almost eight years.
According to Meta’s message, Instagram card aims to give ‘content to help you and your friends connect with the world around you,’ be that watching stories from a live music concert or finding a trending-hang-out-out. The company has iterated that the new feature is only ‘opt-in’ and appears to be off by default, but users are still far from happy about it.
A new way of connecting or an invasion of privacy?
While it is obvious that this is another attempt to overtake Snapchat as the leading messaging service for younger users, it has not worked well to Instagram’s advantage. The main concern is the increased risk of users’ security, especially when it comes to persecution.
Reddit has been a warm place for people to vent their anger (see below), with a user emitting ‘I wonder how many murders this will help’.
Instagram has debuted with a new map feature showing your location to others. And Internet users are furious from r/technology
But how does this differ from Snap cards, can you ask? The biggest distinction that people make is that Snapchat is a more personal app and Instagram is not.
In case of Snapchat, the friend-immersive process is more discreet as you have to enter specific usernames to add people for the most part. While there is the ‘Find Friends’ feature and a search box, your request still needs to be approved by another user before you can start sending each other message.
When it comes to Instagram, it means having a private account that you choose who follows you but those with a public account can be followed by anyone. The search feature also makes it easier to find people to follow and show a user’s full account if it is public which Snapchat does not.
How to make sure that Instagram card is off
Whether you are an iOS or Android user, there is a way to make sure your location is hidden from the New Instagram Maps feature. As mentioned, the feature is opt-in and off by default, but here’s how to make sure it is completely disabled.
Open the Instagram app and go to the Messages tab where you will find the card at the top of your inbox. Tap it, then select the setting icon in the upper right, which will present you with different location sharing options. You want to select the selected ‘none’ and then press the update button to save.
