Are you a worried parent who has just let their young teen have Instagram for the first time and want to know what safety steps you could be following to ensure the safety of your child while they follow other people and start having their own set of Instagram followers?

Have you heard a lot of scary things on the internet and want to know how you can be safe while still having fun on Instagram this year?

Instagram is a beautiful part of the internet. It's an online community built around sharing photos and videos with people you do or don’t know. It is a place where you can reach massive audiences and promote your business or a brand very easily because the amount of people that are using the platform is increasing every day. Also, there are numerous services available, such as Growthoid, that offer to reach real, targeted followers in just a few clicks. If you are looking for a way to raise your influence on the platform, this is a good thing to try.

In 2021, there are many new changes to Instagram that will enhance the experience while also making it safer for users. 

From giving users control over who can follow them to other security features like two-factor authentication, these updates will keep your account safe from hackers and other threats that you might face while being on the internet. If you want to know how to stay safe on Instagram this year, here are a few tips to follow. 

Enable Two–Factor Authentication

Something that isn’t a new concept to the internet is two-factor authentication. However, it is still relatively new to the world of Instagram. Two-factor authentication is exactly what it sounds like. There are two steps required to gain access to the Instagram account. 

This is something that any Instagram user should be making use of, whether you are a business or an individual, as this is to help prevent anyone from hacking into your account. It is a great way to stop people from sending messages in your name from your account too or posting pictures that you have not posted. 

Hacking accounts is very common in bigger Instagram accounts and this is a step that everyone should be following in order to avoid any complications like this. 

Make Your Account Private

For those who are using Instagram as individuals, something that could be life-changing on the app, especially if you are just using it for fun, is making your account private. As an individual who just uses Instagram to follow your favorite accounts and post a few pictures here and there for your friends and family to see, then this is something that you should try out.

Essentially what this does, is allow the user to decide who they want to follow them and who they would rather keep away. This is a great way to keep out any kind of unsolicited messaging or sharing of images and comments. It is also a great way to keep out of reach of strangers or people who come across as creepy or even dangerous. 

When on Instagram, you need to be careful about what you post and who sees it, and this is a great way to know exactly who is seeing your content. 

Monitor Suspicious Accounts

Something that a lot of people take very lightly, or don’t even pay attention to at all, is suspicious accounts. If for some reason you can keep your account private, because you are a business, or influential person, or even just looking to grow on the platform, there is a big risk of suspicious people following you.

It is no secret that a lot of people think that social media is a dangerous place, and this can be true in some instances if you are not cautious. Something that should be paid attention to is suspicious accounts. This could be anything from people messaging you strange messages, oddly commenting on your content, or anything in-between. If you are suspicious of someone, the best step is to report them to avoid any kind of conflict. 

Disable your Activity Status

These days, just about every social media platform around will allow you to disable your activity status. This means that people will not know when you are active on the platform, whether it is posting, scrolling through your feed, or even messaging people. 

A lot of people will wait to see when someone is online in order to message them, and this can easily lead to people falling into a trap. 

Safety Settings for Teenagers

One big plus for Instagram is that they have recently introduced new settings specifically for the safety of teens on the app. Although Instagram is an app that can be used by people as young as 13, the app has implemented a feature that will make every account made by users under the age of 16, private, until they are old enough to change this.

This is a great addition to Instagram as it avoids any kind of unwanted attention for your teens, and even allows for you to see exactly who is wanting to follow them.