How to Delete/Clear Your Instagram Search History Plus Other Privacy Actions You Can Take

Companies that use social media don’t see privacy as a human right, but rather as an inconvenience. If users want to maintain any level of privacy, they must take action on their own. The user must still approve, correct, or opt out in writing or online, despite the existence of numerous laws, including the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the European Union (EU), UK GDPR, and Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA ACT) of the UK. The alternatives differ by region, and as of right now, neither the GDPR nor the UK’s DPA ACT are comparable regulations in the US.

Controlling internet privacy takes more work for Americans than it does for citizens of the EU, especially those in the UK. In spite of this, many businesses provide privacy management in the US and the EU, making it simpler to manage your personal information. You must do numerous actions by yourself, including deleting or wiping your Instagram search history.

What is Instagram Search History?

All of your searches on Instagram, including those for real names, profile names, topics, and niche terms like Star Wars, Nascar, etc., are collected in your search history. Other users cannot see your Instagram search history, but the company collects the data to recommend new profiles and users for you to follow. You can manage the information that Instagram stores by manually deleting your search history from an Android, iOS, or PC browser. The information may also be used for other (unspecified) purposes.

Instagram’s dossier on you grows in depth the more you use the platform, and this practice is legal. It might be time to return some of that, which is also allowed in the US and EU. You can begin by erasing your search history before pursuing additional Instagram privacy choices. This is the procedure.

How to Clear Your Instagram Search History

If you don’t want the corporation to utilize the data to hone your follow suggestion, you must delete your Instagram search history. This is especially important if you’ve conducted several searches with lots of entries over time that provide lists or suggestions that aren’t relevant to you. Messy data can fool IT bots or other technology, which then makes inappropriate recommendations. Follow the instructions below to delete your search history and keep some level of privacy.

Clear Instagram Search History on Android and iOS Devices

The steps, locations, and processes are the same for both Android and iOS; the only differences are that some of the icons on iOS are line art, and Android has a few more menu options. The additional menu selections are irrelevant to this technique, though. Here’s how to delete searches on Instagram for iOS and Android.

1. Launch Instagram and tap on your profile icon in the bottom right section of the screen. On iOS, the profile icon appears as line art that inverts after selecting it.
2. Select the hamburger icon (triple lined-icon) in the top-right section.
3. Choose Your activity from the list of options.
4. Tap on Recent searches.
5. In the Recent Searches page, tap on Clear All to bulk-delete all Instagram history or tap on the X next to entries you want deleted.
6. In the confirmation window that appears, select Clear All.

Your search history has been erased, and unless you simply deleted specific searches, nothing is now returned when you enter the search box. Also reset is the list of people you suggested.

How to Delete Your Instagram Search History using a Browser (Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Safari, etc.)

The procedures for deleting Instagram searches on an internet browser are comparable to those for Android and iPhone, but navigation is a little different. Here is how to now delete all Instagram search history using your preferred browser, given the little change to using Instagram on a computer back around April 2022.

1. Launch Instagram in your browser and click on Explore in the left-side menu.
2. Now, click on Search at the top.
3. From here, you can click X to delete them one at a time or click on Clear all in the top right.

Download Your Instagram Profile

As already mentioned, social networks develop a more thorough profile of you the more frequently you use them. You can find out exactly what information Instagram has on you if you’re interested. You can ask Instagram for a data dump, which will be sent to you as a.zip file inside of an email within 48 hours.

1. Log into Instagram and select your account.
2. Select the Hamburger menu at the top right of the page to access Options.
3. Tap on Settings followed by Security.
4. Under Data and History, select Download Data.
5. Enter the email address you want your data sent to.
6. Tap on Request Download at the bottom of the screen and enter your Instagram password when prompted.

When the email is received, a ZIP archive file will be included. To read this, you will need to decompress it somewhere on your computer. The amount of information the network has gathered about you can then be viewed by opening the file in a text editor.