Reporting online abuse often feels like wishing on a star. You throw your complaint into the ether and hope that some benevolent power is listening, while acknowledging there's a high likelihood nothing will come of it. Even so, you keep trying anyway, because you're an optimist who believes in miracles.
Fortunately, Instagram doesn't leave you completely in the dark. The image sharing platform lets users view a history of their reports, so you can see when action is taken against the offender. The outcome may be the same regardless of whether or not you're informed, but at least you'll know your complaint didn't just evaporate into thin air when you hit "Submit Report."
Here's how to see your report history on Instagram.
- 2 min
- Smartphone
- Instagram app
Step 1: Open Instagram.
Step 2: Tap on your profile icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to go to your profile.
Step 3: Tap the three horizontal lines (the "hamburger icon") in the top right corner ("≡"). This will open a popup menu.
Step 4: Tap "Settings" to go to your settings menu.
Step 5: Tap "Help," which will bring you to Instagram's help menu.
Step 6: Tap "Support Requests."
Step 7: Tap "Reports."
This will show you a list of the reports you've made, including who made the reported post, what you reported it for, and the decisions Instagram has made about it. Tap a report, and you'll be able to see more information about it, as well as tap through to view the reported content itself.
If the matter has been concluded and you're dissatisfied with the outcome, you can also request a review of some of your reports here as well.
Hate speech, harassment, and bullying are all against Instagram's community guidelines; however such issues remain problems on the platform. The platform's moderation isn't perfect either, with abusive comments still slipping through.
In addition to reporting such comments on Instagram, you can turn off your DMs from strangers, filter certain words, and limit or disable comments on your account to help insulate yourself from the toxicity. It may not catch everything, particularly if you have a particularly dedicated harasser. But it will probably make Instagram feel at least a little less psychologically scarring.
