Friend and family popping up in Instagram?

[Shreddyfox]

so I started an instagram account for keeping up with the fandom and trying to meet new people. Suddenly my wife asks me if I made an instagram account (I’ve never had one before) I told her yes and she tells me my sister is following me. I checked the account and some of my friends were following it too. I’m not trying to broadcast the whole “I’m a furry thing”, so I was curious if anyone knows why this happening. The account isn’t linked to my regular Facebook or anything either.

 

[oappo]

My only guess is that you have some sort of personal info (such as location) put into your account and instagram recommended your account to them based on that. Or it could simply try to recommend your account based on email. I don't use instagram though, so maybe I'm wrong about that.

 

[LameFox]

I do remember that deep in that prehistoric time when I briefly had a facebook account, it seemed to add people based on my email contacts (at that time hotmail) despite not having used any identifying information. Instagram being owned by facebook I'd say it's a fair bet they do the same.

 

[Shreddyfox]

My only guess is that you have some sort of personal info (such as location) put into your account and instagram recommended your account to them based on that. Or it could simply try to recommend your account based on email. I don't use instagram though, so maybe I'm wrong about that.

Maybe. It was super weird and went ahead and blocked them so crisis averted for now haha.

 

[Water Draco]

Most lightly reason being that Facebook now owns Instagram is that some information either provided by you or has been collected with out your knowledge. That is common to your Facebook and Instagram accounts.

 

[Shreddyfox]

Maybe people you know just randomly came across your information whilst searching.... and added you based on that.... as that happens to people I know (all the time).

In any case - whilst it sounds like your quandary may be solved for now... (as you deleted your account, I guess)? If you're smart - (in the future) - it might be a good idea for you to make separate social media accounts, for all your Furry-related stuff.... and then keep it all away from your real World stuff.... and (after you do so) ask your wife not to broadcast any of your Furry profile information to anyone, in the future..... (if she's tempted to do so).

And that way there, you may be able to keep your Furry-ness all to yourself, if you want.

That’s what threw me off. I have regular social media for family and friends and I have whole separate accounts for fandom related bs. Both under different emails, but somehow instagram was suggesting my furry account to friends and family. I don’t really care about people in the fandom knowing who I am, I just don’t want people who don’t know anything about the fandom to make assumptions about me. Im assuming this is the case with a lot of people here.

 

[Shreddyfox]

My only guess is that you have some sort of personal info (such as location) put into your account and instagram recommended your account to them based on that. Or it could simply try to recommend your account based on email. I don't use instagram though, so maybe I'm wrong about that.

I’ll have to look but this does seem likely.

 

[Deleted member 111470]

Maybe people you know just randomly came across your information whilst searching.... and added you based on that.... as that happens to people I know (all the time).

That's not at all how Instagram works. It suggests you people to follow. OP's friends and family didn't just randomly come across him - they saw him as a suggestion "New to Instagram".

It may be due to Facebook gathering your data, or if you gave Instagram access to your contacts.

 

[Fallowfox]

Did you enter phone number for the account verification?

When I made a telegram account I used my phone number to verify it, and it told everybody else I had on my phone as a contact, who also had telegram, that I'd made an account.

 

[Shreddyfox]

Did you enter phone number for the account verification?

When I made a telegram account I used my phone number to verify it, and it told everybody else I had on my phone as a contact, who also had telegram, that I'd made an account.

Uh oh. I wonder if it did that with my telegram.

 

[Fallowfox]

Uh oh. I wonder if it did that with my telegram.

If your contacts have it, yes. :}