Instagram Outage is Telling Users Their Accounts Have Been Suspended

Instagram was down Monday morning, which would normally be bad enough. However, the outage then locked users out with the notification that their accounts had been suspended.

The issue was confirmed, in part, by Instagram’s official PR Twitter account, which said the social media company was aware “that some of you are having issues accessing your Instagram account. We’re looking into it and apologize for the inconvenience.” No mention, however, is made of people being told their accounts are suspended. Many replies on the tweet mention their accounts were disabled or that they suddenly had to verify their contact information. Others said they tried to verify their account only to be told their username didn’t exist when attempting to log in.

When PetaPixel tried to replicate the issue on iPhone, where the problem seems to be concentrated according to The Verge, there was no issue getting onto the app nor was a suspension message received. Another member of PetaPixel was also able to get on the app, although it was running slower than usual, so the issue may be getting resolved. Still, recent tweets still make reports of the same issue happening.

em>The Verge did post a screenshot of a suspension message which mirrors those posted under Instagram’s tweet addressing the issue as well. The tech publication further reported that many accounts are seeing drastic dips in follower counts, including The Verge itself, soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo, and even Instagram’s account.

PetaPixel reached out to Instagram to confirm both issues and to ask whether both or either issue is now resolved. However, Instagram did not immediately respond. Instagram has not yet released any further information beyond the initial tweet acknowledging the issue.

Oddly enough, Monday’s outage came on the heels of a more widespread issue. Three of Meta’s biggest apps, Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, were all down for a period last Friday, according to U.K. outlet Express. The Verge, on the other hand, confirmed the issue but noted that WhatsApp was largely unaffected. There do not seem to be any reports of account suspensions tied to last week’s hiccup, though.