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How to share an instagram post from a private account


Private Instagram posts and stories can be shared publicly using just a web browser

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A serious flaw in how Instagram handles private accounts

By Nick Statt / @nickstatt

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Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Instagram has a security flaw in the way it handles posts on accounts that have been set to private, BuzzFeed reported today. The report illustrates how a series of mouse clicks on any web browser can expose the persistent URL of private posts and stories cached on Facebook servers.

Anyone can use a web browser, like Google Chrome, to inspect the source code on a web page using the “Inspect Elements” tool. By tabbing over to the “Img” section of the Network header, you’re able to find the URL of any Instagram image you’ve clicked on, be it a disappearing story or a photo posted to a user’s feed. That URL can then be shared and the photo viewed by anyone, including people who do not follow the private account in question.

Instagram’s version of private is not so private

The Verge was able to independently verify that this process does indeed work. The process is somewhat finicky, but usually by reloading the page of a private account (in this case, my own) and loading the “Img” section, I was able to find the right URL and confirm it could be openly shared. Previews of the image even load in chat applications like Slack. We also confirmed another user was able to find the same URLs, to rule out the possibility that Instagram was only making available this type of data to a user looking at their own private account.

In addition to revealing persistent URLs for photos posted to a private account, the same source-code trick also lets you pull URLs for profile photos of other Instagram users who may have interacted with that post and may have their accounts set to private as well. Of course, you must follow the private account in the first place to have access to the user’s feed and stories, but the flaw and the ease of exploiting it represent an oversight for Instagram’s privacy and security teams.

According to BuzzFeed, these URLs will still retrieve images from Facebook servers even after the posts have been deleted. This appears to be true both for photos posted to the feed and for stories, which delete after 24 hours. BuzzFeed says URLs for private stories will return the story for multiple days after the expiration date. The report also states that the same method works for retrieving URLs of private Facebook posts and photos, although The Verge has not yet been able to independently verify that.

According to Facebook, this type of behavior — seeking out the URL of a private photo so it can be more easily shared publicly — is not dissimilar from taking a screenshot of a pos. The company says it has not seen any abuse related to this feature of its network. “The behavior described here is the same as taking a screenshot of a friend’s photo on Facebook and Instagram and sharing it with other people. It doesn’t give people access to a person’s private account,” a company spokesperson tells The Verge.

Update September 9th, 9:35PM ET: Added statement from Facebook.

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How to Repost and Share to Your Instagram Story

  • You can share a post to your Instagram Story using the paper airplane icon.  
  • The menu that appears will give you the option to share a post from any profile that allows sharing in the setting — private posts won't show this option.
  • Brands can also leverage this feature to create more engagement with their followers.

Instagram not only grants the ability to share your posts to an Instagram story, but allows you to add pictures posted by your friends, favorite influencers, and other accounts you follow. 

This feature can also be useful for brands who want to create more engagement and keep their Instagram account active.

For privacy reasons, this option is only available for accounts that have allowed sharing of their posts. If you try to share a post to your Instagram story from someone else's private account, the feature will not be available. 

If you want to share a post to your Instagram story, here's how to do it.

How to share an Instagram post to your story

1. Open the Instagram app on your phone.

2. Locate the post you want to share in your Instagram story on your feed.

3. Tap the paper airplane icon.

Tap the paper airplane icon. Devon Delfino/Insider

4. The Share menu will appear. 

5. Tap the first option, Add post to your story.

Tap Add post to your story. Devon Delfino/Insider

6. The photo or video post will automatically upload as a story draft. 

7. Tap the icons at the top of the window to add stickers or gifs, draw, or type text. 

Make the changes or additions you want to make. Devon Delfino/Insider

8. Tap Your Story in the bottom left-hand corner to post, or select Close Friends if you want to share it less widely.  

Quick tip: You can do this whether you're finding a post on someone's profile using the Explore page, or when it pops up directly on your feed. 

How brands can use the Instagram story feature

Like any Instagram user, brands can use stories to keep their account active. But it can also be a valuable way to share behind-the-scenes content and build a deeper relationship with your audience. 

If you create a brand-specific hashtag, you can find posts from people who already love and use your product or service. You can then share those posts to your stories to keep your audience engaged and notified about the brands movements. 

This accomplishes two things: it allows you to showcase your brand or product to a wider pool of Instagram users. Second, it lets the brand showcase authentic user-generated content that shows how the products can be incorporated into the everyday life of a customer.

Quick tip: If desired, you can also add a link to a specific product, or your site, to make it easier for people to find the product that's being displayed.

Marissa Perino

Marissa Perino is a former editorial intern covering executive lifestyle. She previously worked at Cold Lips in London and Creative Nonfiction in Pittsburgh. She studied journalism and communications at the University of Pittsburgh, along with creative writing. Find her on Twitter: @mlperino.

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Devon Delfino

Devon Delfino is a Brooklyn-based freelance journalist specializing in personal finance, culture, politics, and identity. Her work has been featured in publications such as The Los Angeles Times, Teen Vogue, Business Insider, and CNBC. Follow her on Twitter at @devondelfino.

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How do I share someone's feed post to my Instagram story?

Help Center

Instagram Features

Stories

You can only post someone else's post to your story if the author of the post has made their account public and allowed their posts to be reposted. Not everyone can share a post from the feed in their story.

To share someone's feed post to your story:

Instagram app for Android and iPhone

Click the icon below a photo or video in the feed.

Select Add Post to Your Story, Add Video to Your Story, or Add Reels Video to Story.

Press in the lower right corner of the screen.

Click Share.

Instagram Lite app for Android

If you share someone's post in your story, every person who has viewed it will be able to see the name of the author and go to his account. Learn more about how to share a store in an Instagram story.

If you have a public account, you can prevent other people from sharing your stories.

To prevent people from sharing your posts in Stories:

Instagram app for Android and iPhone

Tap the or icon on your profile photo in the bottom right corner of the screen to go to your profile.

Click the icon in the upper right corner of the screen and select Settings.

Click Privacy and select History.

Click next to Allow reposts in stories.

Instagram Lite app for Android

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At the moment, Instagram is one of the most popular social networks and every day its users are becoming more and more. But beginners often have questions related to some technical issues, especially when it comes to transferring links to their personal account. After all, when a user starts his page, he wants to share this event with friends and colleagues as soon as possible, and it’s very disappointing when something doesn’t work out.

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Let's discuss the most common obstacles that prevent newbies from sharing a link to their account. And we will find out what ways exist to declare your presence on Instagram or vice versa, hide this fact and restrict access to your account.

Where is the link to the account in the Instagram mobile application

Despite the very clear interface of Instagram, social network users often have a problem how to find and copy a link to their personal profile from a mobile application. But even though the platform does not provide for displaying an explicit URL, ways to copy a link from a mobile Instagram versions do exist.

How to copy Instagram profile link

From phone

Many people are interested in how to copy a link to an Instagram profile from a phone. There are several ways to share it with your friends. You can get a link to your personal page through another user, for this you need:

  • go to your account page from someone else's Instagram profile;
  • select the “three dots” sign and in the window that opens, click on “Share this profile”;
  • in the line that appears, enter your name or select it from the list of dialogs;
  • then we give commands “send” and “ready”;
  • we return to our account, open the dialogue where our message came;
  • hold down a profile message to display a bar at the bottom;
  • select “share” and send a link to your personal profile to the recipients we need.

If you need to send a link to your personal profile to another social network or messenger, then:

  • in the “menu” section, click on “copy profile url”;
  • open the desired dialog;
  • paste the link we copied from the clipboard and send it to the desired address.

And another easy way to copy a link to Instagram from your phone:

  • go to your account;
  • select any publication from us, open it;
  • click on the “three dots” sign and click “Share to…”;
  • from the proposed list, select the application we need and send the link to the destination.

In this case, the message will include a direct link to the publication and a signature from it. When switching, the user will open the Instagram mobile application, he will go to the page with your post and by clicking on your name at the top of the post, he will go to the Instagram profile.

If your account is private and no other person is following it, all posts will be hidden. The user will immediately go to the main page of your profile on Instagram.

From computer

Copying a link to your Instagram profile via PC is even easier:

  • Run any browser on your computer.
  • Find the social network Instagram in the search engine and, if necessary, log in to your account.
  • In the upper right corner, click on the icon and select the link to your page in the address bar with the mouse cursor.
  • Next, by pressing the right mouse button, select the "Copy" item.

Obtaining a reference via a manual template

You can also share a link to your Instagram account using manual methods. You write the address of the official Instagram website: https://www.instagram.com and add your nickname to it (for example: smm-novastar), which is unique and as a result you get the same unique address for your page, which you can share with friends and colleagues: https://www. instagram.com/smm-novastar

How to copy url to someone else's Instagram profile

In order to copy the url to someone else's Instagram profile, you first need to go to it. Opposite the display of his login, you will see a sign of three dots. You click on it and select "Copy profile url". Thus, you get a link to someone else's Instagram profile, which you can share in messages or save it in your contacts.

How to send a link to Direct

In order to send a link to a profile in Direct, you need to go to it, click the “three dots” sign at the top right and click “Share this profile”. In the search field, select the recipient with whom we want to share the link, click "Send" and your message will automatically be sent to him, along with the link.

To send a link in Direct to your favorite Instagram post (it can be either a photo or a video), just open it in view mode and click on the airplane sign. Thus, you can share your own and other people's publications.

You can also share interesting Stories in Direct messages. To do this, when viewing the history, you need to click on the familiar airplane and select the recipient.

But keep in mind that if you share posts or stories of a private profile, then the recipient will be able to see this content only by subscribing to it.

You can attach links to not only internal but also external resources to a message in Direct: websites, other social networks, instant messengers.

Creating a QR business card on Instagram

Personal business card with a QR code for Instagram was originally created to personalize Instagrammers. Creating a QR business card on Instagram helps users quickly find the profile of a blogger or business account they are interested in.

Business card allows you to find a user without entering a nickname and creates a "name tag. It can be placed in any messenger, social network, website.

To create a business card, you need the official version of the mobile application. Then you need to get a QR code on Instagram and for this you need to do a few simple steps:

  • log into your Instagram account;
  • open the news feed, and then click on the profile picture in the lower right corner;
  • click in the upper right corner on the three horizontal stripes;
  • further, in order to open a menu with a different design of business cards, you need to click on the "Instagram business card" tab;
  • do not forget to save the result to the smartphone gallery.

You can create a personal business card not only on a mobile phone, but also on a PC. To do this, go to the browser, click on the profile picture in the upper right corner, go to the "Settings" section, select the gear symbol and click on it. Then click on the "Instagram business card" tab, create a background and save.

How to insert an active link into your profile

In order to insert an active link into your personal profile, in the profile header, go to your Instagram account and select the "About me" and "Website" fields.
Then you:
1. Click on the "Edit profile" button.
2. Double-click on the line "About Me" and "Website".
3. Select the "Insert" command and add your link.
4. Save all the changes made by clicking the "Save" button in the upper right corner of the screen.
The added link will be blue and active. By clicking on it, you can go to any other web resource.

How to copy a link to a private profile

To copy the link to a closed Instagram account, you can use the address bar of your browser, as in the case of an open account. To do this, go to any web browser and open the page of the user we need. Select its url-address and click "Copy".

The next method is no more difficult than the previous one. All you need to do is add your private profile login after the address of the Instagram social networking site. For example, a private profile nickname is smm-novastar. Then the link to the account will look like this - the address of the Instagram site itself (https://www. instagram.com) and your nickname: https://www.instagram.com/smm-novastar And when you go to this address, the user will be taken to to the desired closed account.

Transition via multilink

Such a useful tool as multilinks allows you to give a link to a business card site, where it will be possible to make a transition through a multilink to all your profiles. These are instant messengers and social networks. You will be able to share your contacts with the audience and not lose customers if you are in business.

To create multilinks, special constructor services are used, for example, such as: Taplink or Ylink.

In order to use a multilink in working with the Instagram social network, you need to:

  • Select the appropriate service-constructor and log in to it.
  • Add block “Social networks”.
  • Customize the display of the go to Instagram button.
  • Save changes.
  • Copy the link generated by the service. This will be the url address to the business card site, where you can add links to your social networks and instant messengers, including your Instagram account.

How do I make my account private?

There are situations when users want to close their profile from outside observers and add to subscribers only those whom they really know or that contacts are really important to them.

It's easy enough to make your profile private.

To do this, you need:

  • Go to the "Edit" and "Privacy and Security" section.
  • In the first paragraph, check the box next to “Closed profile”.

You can also hide your Instagram page from a specific person. For example, who is rude to you, writes offensive comments, or you are simply tired of his obsessive attention.

To do this, you need to do the following: