As a content creator, having someone reposting your work unauthorizedly is the last thing to desire. Sadly, that can easily happen especially on public domains like Instagram and other social media. Thus, you may ask, “Does Instagram notify when you screenshot a story and other content?”
In this article, that is the question we are going to answer. Not only that, we will take a brief look at methods to prevent illegal screenshotting of your IG Stories.
So, if you care about your content’s privacy on Instagram, read on.
Does Instagram Notify When You Screenshot A Story?
Instagram does not notify users if you take a screenshot of their Story and almost every other content on the platform, including posts, Reels, and direct messages. The same also applies whenever someone screen captures your content.
Due to that fact, we understand that you may feel afraid that others can easily copy and distribute your content without giving any credit. It is unfortunate because Instagram briefly upheld a stricter privacy protection for Stories.
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Why Instagram Does Not Notify About Stories Screenshots
If you asked “Does Instagram notify when you screenshot a Story” in 2018, the answer would have been yes. That year, Instagram tested a feature to let selected users know if someone has taken a screenshot of their Stories. It marked the name of accounts that saved a screen capture on the Story viewers list.
The feature did not only notify Story creators but also those who took a screenshot of Stories. Everytime they recorded a Story, they received a pop-up message saying that the owner of the Story would get alerted.
While the feature could have been beneficial for users’ privacy, Instagram decided not to keep it. The social platform never explained why, but some reports stated that the experiment was met with negative responses.
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Does Instagram Notify When You Screenshot Messages?
Not all Instagram content is free to screenshot. The platform gives you an alert when someone takes screen captures of vanishing messages that you send. Furthermore, the recorded messages are marked on the chat so that you notice them.
So, how do you send vanishing messages? There are two ways to do it and they are easy.
First, you can turn on the Vanish Mode by swiping up from the bottom of the screen in a chat. A new chat room will appear once you do that. When you close Vanish Mode, all texts and media will disappear.
Now that you know the answer to “Does Instagram notify when you screenshot vanishing messages”, let’s take a look at the second way to prompt the alert. This method involves changing the media visibility setting. Below are the steps:
- Open a chat.
- Tap on the camera button at the bottom left corner.
- Take or select the media you want to send.
- Tap Allow Replay at the bottom left corner to change it to View Once.
It should be noted that the default Allow Replay setting also enables your media to disappear, but not until the recipient takes a look twice. View Once, on the other hand, limits the recipient to only see it once.
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How to Prevent Screenshotting of Instagram Stories
You most likely ask “Does Instagram notify when you screenshot” for privacy reasons and it is understandable. At the same time, setting your profile to private may not be the best option since you want to maximize your reach as a social media content creator.
While there is no perfect way to prevent unauthorized screenshotting, you can minimize the possibility or hinder people from taking screen captures. Some of the measures include:
Watermark Your Stories
Watermarks can be distracting for viewers. Not to mention, they ruin the aesthetics of pictures and videos. So, even after knowing the answer to “Does Instagram notify when you screenshot”, some content creators may not agree with using watermarks.
However, having watermarked content may deter people from screenshotting your content. Even if they attempt to remove the object, the process is usually destructive and will make the content visually unappealing.
Use The Close Friends List to Your Advantage
Instagram has the Close Friends feature that allows you to share Stories with followers that you choose only. So, if you are anxious after knowing the answer to “Does Instagram notify when you screenshot”, you can use Close Friends to limit Stories visibility to trustworthy people..
Alternatively, Close Friends is a handy feature to maintain privacy. By using it, you can keep Stories that show personal information and moments for best friends or family members.
Adding accounts to your Close Friends list is easy. You only need to go to your account settings and tap Privacy > Story > Close Friends. To post for Close Friends, tap Close Friends in the Stories editor page.
Hide Stories from Abusive Accounts
Are you wary of copycats after knowing the answer to “Does Instagram notify when you screenshot”? Apart from using the Close Friends feature, you may hide Stories from certain users. This is a great option since you can still reach as many audiences as possible while keeping abusive followers away.
To choose who to hide Stories from, go to your account settings and tap Privacy > Story > Hide story from. After that, you can post normally by tapping Your Stories in the Stories editor page.
Read : How to Hide Likes on Instagram
Does Instagram Notify When You Screenshot: Wrap Up
It is unfortunate that Instagram does not alert you if someone takes a screen capture of your Stories. With that in mind, what should you do?
Thankfully, there are ways to hinder irresponsible people from copying your Stories. You may add a watermark, share to Close Friends list, or hide Stories from accounts you choose.
If you are afraid of people screenshotting your direct messages, make sure to use the vanishing messages. Not only that sent media will disappear, Instagram lets you know when the recipient takes a screen capture of them.
We hope that this article answers your question about “Does Instagram notify when you screenshot”. Please stay tuned for more information about content creation!
