Have you noticed celebrities reposting information about a new Instagram rule? It’s a hoax.
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Usher, T.I., Tom Holland, Taraji P. Henson, Martha Stewart, US Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, and many others recently took to social media to upload a false note about changes to Instagram’s privacy policy.
According to the memo, the platform can “use your photos,” even the deleted ones, unless you release a statement forbidding it.
“Don’t forget tomorrow starts the new Instagram rule where they can use your photos. Don’t forget Deadline today!!! It can be used in court cases in litigation against you,” the message began. “If you do not publish a statement at least once it will be tacitly allowing the use of your photos.”
But the company has no such guidelines. In fact, Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, addressed the bluff to clear up the confusion.
"If you're seeing a meme claiming Instagram is changing its rules tomorrow, it's not true -- swipe up to learn more," he said in an Instagram Story that linked to a Women's Wear Daily article about the posts.
Some eventually deleted the meme, and others, like Perry, replaced the message with another that seemed to mock the original.
This isn’t the first time people have fallen victim to a social media hoax.
According to BuzzFeed News, variations of the post have gone viral on other social platforms at least since 2012.
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