Instagram take aim at ‘bad actors’ in new verification update

People impersonating famous names through anonymously run Instagram accounts and other “bad actors” are being targeted by the Facebook-owned firm, which has launched an update to reveal more details about profile ownership.

The update, which involves the rollout of an ‘About This Account’ tab and a new blue tick verification form, is aimed at ridding the online photo sharing network of duplicate accounts and profiles sharing harmful information or copyright infringing content.

Mike Krieger, Instagram’s chief technology officer, said the latest update will help make the photo sharing app “safe.”

It could spell bad news for people impersonating or even parodying well-known figures. Those who run so called ‘call-out accounts’, for example, whistleblowers revealing industry secrets, might also be affected by the development.

“Keeping people with bad intentions off our platform is incredibly important to me,” Krieger said. “That means trying to make sure the people you follow and the accounts you interact with are who they say they are, and stopping bad actors before they cause harm.”

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The new ‘About This Account’ is aimed at pages with a large audience, with the tab designed to give viewers information about when the account was created, location, former usernames, as well as details about advertisements displayed on the page. Instagram has said, however, that profile owners will be given a chance to review their information before it can be viewed publicly online.

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