Instagram Private Photos Not Safe? The Shocking Truth Revealed!

It's true: There's always that sense of "security" when you know you're in control of your online content, specially when "Private Mode," "Only Me" or whatever button of such kind is out there. Thanks to these features, sharing has never been more dynamic -- and personal at the same time.

But what if you find out that those private photos of yours are not as "private" as you think? All eyes are now on Instagram, the photo-sharing platform subject to recent controversy following an identified flaw in its privacy systems.

On Monday, Quartz published a report detailing Instagram's privacy loophole. It was noted that private images were publicly exposed, until Instagram took action over the weekend "in apparent response to queries by Quartz." By that, the issue has been patched at the time of this writing.

First, it must be noted that all Instagram posts are public by default. That means users will have to manually reset their security to private mode, should they wish to share pictures only among followers. This can be done by tapping "Edit Your Profile" and togging the button next to "Posts are Private."

Now Quartz' discovery may seem alarming for some. Apparently, turning your account private does not hide previous posts. Through Instagram's official web site, Quartz reported that a user can browse both public and private photos by anyone he / she follows. Ultimately, these photos can be shared by copying their URLs and having them posted wherever the Internet permits.

To best illustrate the scenario, let's take a look at a fictional case below:

Krishy has joined Instagram last month. Due to her popularity, thousands of people immediately followed her account. She has shared tons of images from grand concerts to simple morning selfies.

Now Krishy has decided to quit showbiz and wants to lead a private life. She turned her Instagram account to private mode.

Believing her account has been secured by the Privacy toggle, Krishy was surprised to see her previous snaps shared by people who don't even follow her -- on Facebook!

That's Instagram's privacy loophole, which again, neglects recent privacy set-ups and makes previously-public content stay visible. URLs for followers, screenshots for the rest. Images, like any other data, can multiply once sufficient access is established. Quartz put it this way, "There was nothing stopping anyone from looking at them, but you needed to know where to look to see them."

Macworld specified that the links are only viewable on web and not on Instagram's iOS and Android apps.

Check out this walkthrough image and determine whether or not you've been affected by the loophole.

Not familiar with Instagram? See David A. Cox's tutorial below.