Linking URLs to content from stories seems to be valid for a couple days links to photos on the feed remain live for potentially even longer. The hack works even when images and videos in a private Instagram story, which are meant to last for only 24 hours, expire or are deleted. There is a difference between being able to screenshot a private image from a webpage and being able to easily publicly share the URL of that private image with un-authenticated users. 'It doesn’t give people access to a person’s private account.'īut it's not exactly the same. “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,' a Facebook spokesperson told BuzzFeed News. This public URL can then be shared with people who are not logged in to Instagram or do not follow that private user.Īccording to tests performed by BuzzFeed's Tech + News Working Group, JPEGs and MP4s from private feeds and stories can be viewed, downloaded, and shared publicly this way.

A user simply inspects the images and videos that are being loaded on the page and then pulls out the source URL. The hack - which works on Instagram stories as well - requires only a rudimentary understanding of HTML and a browser. They can be accessed, downloaded, and distributed publicly by friends and followers via a stupidly simple work-around. Photos and videos posted to private accounts on Instagram and Facebook aren’t as private as they might seem.

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