Damn you Instagram, I’m working really hard to grow my Instagram account, and is this what you give me back?
Do you feel the same? After spending hours on Instagram, you notice that Instagram has blocked some actions and restricted your app usage? Even worse, your account has been shadowbanned and you had no idea?
I would say, maybe working too much was a bad idea. Instagram is a photo/video sharing app that’s meant to be used by everyone to have some fun and maybe, do some business. But, the app is not here to be exploited or overused, which many tend to do. And, hence, when the app is wrongly used, it rightly punishes in the form of action blocking, account restriction, or shadowbanning.
In this article, we will look at the causes that can get your Instagram account blocked, restricted, or shadowbanned. And, we will also look at some of the steps that you can take to recover your account.
Instagram Account Blocked/Restricted:
Have you received a message when trying to perform an action, “You’ve been temporarily blocked from performing this action?” Or something like, “Action blocked?” Any of these messages could mean that you have crossed the Instagram hourly/daily limit and hence Instagram has decided to temporarily block your account or specific actions.
Why is Instagram Blocking your Actions?
Instagram is blocking your actions for some of the following reasons:
Following/unfollowing a lot of pictures in a short period of time. Accounts have the following limit of 500 per day. And, unfollow limit to 100 per hour. These limits could be extended based on the age of the account. But, these are the safer numbers to stick to while performing these actions. If you’ve followed/unfollowed more than the limit, Instagram could block your action.
Mass liking/commenting/messaging. Any engagement done massively or rapidly that may look like a bot can result in immediate blocking.
Posting too much can also be the reason why Instagram has restricted your account. If you’re sharing too many posts and using many hashtags, all on the same day, Instagram can think of your actions as spam.
Sharing violated/harmful content is not allowed on Instagram and you should not be posting inappropriate content. If you share content that violates the community guidelines of Instagram, your content may be reported by another user. If your account is reported too often, Instagram may temporarily restrict your account usage or shadowban it.
Ways to Perform to Recover your Account from Instagram Block/Restriction?
Here are some of the ways to recover your Instagram account if you’ve received a message of temporary suspension or if your account seems to be restricted:
Ask Instagram for a manual review:
If you know that you haven’t performed any of the actions mentioned above, then you can click on the “Let us know” / “Tell us” button. This will let Instagram know that your account was blocked by mistake and they will look into it. Instagram might ask you for a few supporting documents, and after providing those, Instagram will enable your account in 1-2 days.
Let it recover:
If your account is temporarily blocked, it will recover itself with 24-48 hours. It’s better to not perform any activity on Instagram at this point to prevent any further suspension.
Re-install:
If you need an urgent recovery, you can try to uninstall and reinstall the app. It might/might not work depending on how your account was blocked/suspended.
Un-install any third-party app:
If you have installed any third-party app to manage your Instagram account, you must try to uninstall that. Some third-party apps use encryption software that could affect your account. Change your Instagram password so you are logged out from the apps you have previously connected with.
Instagram Shadowban
While your Instagram account is blocked or restricted, you would get a warning from Instagram that it’s happening. But, in the case of a shadowban, there’s no warning from Instagram.
But first of all, what is an Instagram Shadowban? In general, it means that a user’s content on social media is blocked in such a way they don’t even know that they have been shadowbanned. Your posts will not appear in anyone’s Instagram feeds unless they follow your account.
If you are hit by a shadowban, obviously, your visibility on Instagram will be significantly affected followed by a decrease in engagement rate. That’s why it’s vital to know if your account was shadowbanned.
To check if your account is shadowbanned, follow the tips below.
Ways to check if your Instagram Account is Shadowbanned
Use a Shadowban Tester:
This is the simplest and most effective way to know if your account is shadowbanned. There are many tools available online that you can use for free. Using toos like the Heist, you can understand if you were hit by a shadowban and even find out which hashtags your profile has been shadowbanned for.
Check your Presence:
After you’ve posted on Instagram, immediately ask a few accounts that do not follow you to check if they can see your posts in the hashtags you used. If they can, you are not shadowbanned. If they can’t, you are.
Your account could be shadowbanned for the same reason it has been blocked or restricted. Not following the community guidelines, or excessively performing certain actions, or using third-party tools. What to do if you’re shadowbanned? Keep reading!
How to Recover a Shadowbanned Account?
Avoid using bots or telegram apps:
Using third-party tools that use bots to perform actions or using telegrams to get more comments/views can also result in getting your account shadowbanned. The best idea to recover your account is to use the account normally away from these tools and apps.
Avoid using broken or similar hashtags:
Check for hashtags that you’re using and avoid using the same hashtags in every post. Keep changing the hashtags to not look spammy to Instagram.
Use your hashtags wisely:
Make sure to include relevant hashtags in your content and avoid using spammy hashtags. Also, you don’t have to add as much hashtags as possible in one single post. Quality over quantity. Don’t overuse them, but aim for relevance and effectiveness.
Write authentic comments:
Your comments on Instagram posts should be authentic and genuine. Don’t write generic comments, otherwise, you might be mistaken for a bot.
Read the Terms of Use and Community Guidelines of Instagram:
To make yourself safe from being blocked or shadowbanned, be sure to know and adhere to the Instagram community guidelines.
Be Human
My parting advice would be that as long as you use Instagram as a normal human would, there are very low chances of having your account restricted or shadowbanned. Only if you use your account as a bot, Instagram’s algorithm is going to catch you. So, be human!
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