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Can a private investigator access my Instagram?

7 September 2021

Can a private investigator access my Instagram?

One of the most frequently asked questions is "Can a private investigator access my Instagram in the UK?". Accessing a Facebook account through a login and password procedure without permission from the account owner is clear. No, we cannot. A Facebook account is accessed through a login and password, which if accessed by a private investigator would be ILLEGAL under UK law.

However, there are a few things you should bear in mind.

Social media is by nature open, with the ability to share your most intimate moments whenever and wherever you are.
However, if you are the subject of an investigation, skilled private investigators will use the inherent openness of this data to their advantage.

The question of whether a private investigator can access your account through a login and password procedure is clear. No, we cannot. An Instagram account is accessed through a login and password, which if accessed by a private investigator would be ILLEGAL under UK law. At least without the account owners permission, which is highly unlikely to be granted if they are the subject of the investigation.

However, a private investigator has many ways to access media posted a non-private Instagram account such as pictures, videos, stories, comments, followers, followers and more. 
To protect yourself, you may want to pay closer attention to what you post, while configuring your account settings for suitable privacy.

Skilled investigators can take information from social media to pivot and find further details about the subject. This can be information from photographs, hashtags, statements, followers and other information. Utilising this effectively is what separates good investigators from great investigators as these types of profiles reveal a lot more then it seems on the face of it.

You can see our video for an example of Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) which is commonly used by UK private investigators. Instagram is one small part of OSINT and can be critical in gaining further insights into the persons history, behaviour, friendship groups, finances, lifestyles and more. 

Operant Investigators are a professional UK investigation service who utilise Instagram and open source intelligence in our investigations for our clients. 
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