How to Check and Remove Authorized Apps on Instagram

There are many ways to compromise your social media account. And giving access to malicious third-party applications is one of them. This is exactly how around 87 million Facebook users got their illegally mined account information in the famous Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal. We have a tutorial on removing apps from your Facebook account. In this article, we will explain the different ways to check and remove authorized or unauthorized applications from your Instagram account.

While some of these apps are secure (especially those owned by Instagram – Boomerang, Layout, etc.), third-party apps that are not affiliated or endorsed by Instagram cannot be trusted entirely. Even Instagram warns of the potential damage some third-party apps can cause. If you have access to your Instagram account, for example, a (malicious) application can read your direct messages (DM), obtain information about your contacts, spam your page with content, etc.

If you’ve linked certain apps to your Instagram account in the past, that’s fine; you don’t have to fight about it. You were probably not aware of the security risks to which you and your contacts were subject. Fortunately, you can easily check which apps you have previously allowed to access your Instagram account.

We will guide you through the steps in the paragraphs below. In addition, we will show you how to delete or disconnect an app from your Instagram account. Let’s do that, okay?

You can follow these solutions on your mobile phone and computer. However, since the majority of Instagram users probably access their accounts from a smartphone, we will start with the mobile application. The steps remain the same on the Android and iOS versions of the Instagram app.

On the mobile app

Step 1: Tap the profile picture in the lower right corner of your Instagram app to launch the profile menu.

2nd step: Tap the hamburger menu icon to reveal more profile menu options.

Step 3: Tap Settings.

Step 4: Select Security from the Settings menu.

Step 5: In the “Data and history” section, tap the “Applications and websites” option.

Step 6: Tap Active.

This would reveal all the apps that currently have access to your Instagram account, as well as other details like the authorization date.

Step 7: If you find an app that you do not trust or that you do not remember having authorized, press the Delete button to revoke its access.

Step 8: A dialog box asking you to confirm your action will appear on the screen. Press Delete to confirm your action.

It’s so simple. With this method, you can remove access from any application connected to your Instagram account. Now let’s see how you can do the same using a web browser.

On PC

Step 1: Log into your Instagram account from any browser on your computer.

2nd step: On the home page, tap the Profile icon to access your Instagram profile page.

Step 3: On your account / profile page, tap the gear icon.

Step 4: Press “Applications and website” in the context menu.

This will take you to the access management page of your account where you will be able to see the apps and websites that you have authorized to access your Instagram account.

For each app connected to your account, Instagram will display additional details such as the app information, as well as the date you authorized the app to access your account.

Step 5: To remove an authorized app from your Instagram account, just hit the Remove button just below the app.

Step 6: In the confirmation pop-up window, press Delete to continue.

And that’s all. The application will no longer have access to new data and information from your Instagram account.

Note: If you delete an application from your Instagram account, it may still have access to some (old) information that you previously shared while it was still authorized in your account.

Additional Tips

• If you believe that an app is selling / storing / stealing your account information, we recommend that you revoke the app’s access to your Instagram account and delete your account on the app website or in the ‘application.
• If you accidentally deleted an app from your Instagram account, you can re-authorize the app. Just launch the app on your phone or visit the app website in a browser, select the Instagram login or “ Connect with Instagram ” option, populate your Instagram account credentials and authorize the ‘application.

Take control of your account

Before authorizing an application on your Instagram account, read all the information to which the application requests access. If you haven’t followed the requirements and permissions for the app, it’s not too late. Follow the steps above to check the details of the authorized application and remove any unauthorized or unapproved application. As an additional layer of security, we also recommend that you change your Instagram password after removing an app from your account. You know, just to be sure.