Well…this is a new one for me….an Instagram ban. But here’s the twist, I was recently banned for violating Instagram’s terms of use for an account that I had:
- Just created (I was banned 2 seconds after pushing the “Create Account” button and
- Had never posted a photo or comment from (since the ban happened immediately)
I mean, Instagram is notorious for banning accounts without any notice. They are pretty clear about the reasons that they might ban an account, but when it happens, there usually aren’t any warnings…it just happened. I hadn’t even upload a single instagram post and BOOM! Instabanned.
I have seen multiple accounts with upwards of 100K followers who are suddenly banned. Those who plan for the possibility that it might happen often create a backup account to use while they try to resolve the issue.
In my situation, however, my account was immediately banned upon being created.
If your Instagram account is banned, there are steps you can take to get it back. Click To TweetMy wife and I are starting a new travel blog at FlatlandersIn.com with the goal of documenting and sharing our travel and providing tips and recommendations for those who might be interested.
As part of the blog-building process, I attempted to create a new Instagram business account at the handle of @FlatlandersIn. Nothing provocative…nothing offensive or incendiary. Just a simple handle where we can share our travel photo.
NOTE: Flatlanders are not flat-Earthers. For those not familiar with the term, flatlanders are people from flat areas of the country like Kansas, where we reside. Flat-earthers, on the other hand, well…don’t get me started.
Yet, upon clicking the “Create Account” button, I immediately received a notice that my Instagram account was deactivated. The account was created, it’s not like our Instagram signup was blocked. Heck, we even got the confirmation that the account had been created.
Here’s what the notice looks like.
Apparently, I violated the Instagram terms of use without ever even posting a single Instagram photo, so I received this message from Instagram stating “your account has been disabled for violating our terms”. Cool!
Knowing that Instagram is going to play a big role in our blog, I decided to go through the steps and document them for anyone else who is experiencing this issue. The goal is to figure out and share the exact steps on how to get unbanned from Instagram.
Unfortunately, Instagram support is notoriously bad and automated using AI, so I wasn’t looking forward to the process, but if it helps someone else out it’s totally worth the hassle.
Here are the steps I took.
NOTE: These steps worked for me because I followed them exactly. I performed every step that Instagram/Facebook asked me to. DON’T skip steps. DON’T leave emails unanswered. DO everything they ask of you.
Step 1 – Appeal The Ban Using The Instagram App
To kick of the process, you need to appeal the ban using the Instagram app. That means attempting to login and then, when you get the ban notification, click the “Appeal” link.
In the Instagram appeal form that follows, fill in ALL the information. Don’t skip any fields and be sure to include an email address that is live and you are actively monitoring. You are going to want to reply back to the requests for information quickly.
NOTE: In a lot of cases, Instagram is trying to prevent bots or inflammatory people from creating accounts. They likely flagged your account for a reason, so you need to prove to them that you are legit. In my case, the fact that our blog is named “Flatlanders In” might have triggered some “Flat-Earther” logic in their AI.
During the process, you are going to be asked to provide some sort of proof, in the form of a document, that shows that you are a human being and you are entitled to the Instagram account.
In my case, I uploaded a receipt from GoDaddy showing that I had purchased the domain. This is the what the attachment looked like:
Once you have attached your proof of being a human, submit your appeal request.
Step 2 – Wait For The First Of Additional Requests For Information
Again, the AI is trying establish that you are a human being and you aren’t some shady, black-hat trying to make a new Instagram account and manipulate Instagram or use it for bad purposes.
So, the next request for information I received was sent to the email on file for the account, to prove that it is a legit email address and there is a human paying attention to it. Because Instagram is going to try to connect with you via email, it’s important that you monitor the email address you used to create the Instagram account that’s blocked.
Here’s what the first email looked like:
Pretty straightforward, right? Now that they know I am a human being monitoring the email address on file, they want me to reply back with a business document that proves I have the right to use the Instagram handle that is associated with the domain.
I replied back with a copy of my utility bill where our office for FlatlandersIn resides.
Step 3 – Prove That You Are REALLY A Human Being.
Now it starts to get kind of silly but Instagram wants to make sure I really, really, really am a human being.
So, they sent the email below asking me to write out a code, write my name, and the Instagram handle and then take a photo of me holding it and reply with the photo.
At this point, I feel like Instagram’s AI is just making me jump through hoops to see how silly it can make the human look. And I do feel pretty silly asking someone to take a photo of me holding a piece of paper with a code on it.
Step 4 – Hurry Up And Wait.
This is the hardest part.
Did all of my emails work? Is the AI paying attention? Did my answers and documents and photos satisfy its need? Will I get my brand new Instagram unblocked?
All of the emails say that they will respond back in 1-2 days. I was banned on a Tuesday, I submitted my documents on the following Wednesday, so the hope was that bots would reply back and give me access by Friday.
Step 5 – Celebrate The Success
Well, it didn’t take but a few hours for the AI bots (or maybe a human at Facebook/Instagram) to review the documents that I sent over and lift the ban on our account.
I received the email below that the ban on the account was lifted and I should be able to login to the account now.
Step 6 – Login And Make Sure Everything Works
The last step in making sure that the ban was actually lifted was to login to the account via a browser and make sure that I had full access to the account. The good news is everything is working as expected!
After logging in with my credentials, I was able to access my profile and can start building out the account with a profile photo, bio, etc…
In Summary – Follow The Steps Exactly…Even If They Seem Silly
I hope these steps help you if your brand new Instagram account has been banned.
When working to get Instagram to lift the ban on our account, be sure to follow every step and answer every email they send to you. Click To TweetWhile the process seems kind of silly and protracted, it only took a couple of days to get the account unlocked and I guess that’s not too bad.
If you have other experiences or suggestions for those out there who are experiencing an Instagram ban, be sure to share them in a comment so others can benefit.
Cheers!
–Sean
ONE ADDITIONAL NOTE: I (nor any other individual) cannot help you gain access to a banned account. Only you can do that by working directly with Instagram/Facebook. Follow the steps carefully and make sure you respond to every single email.
My dear Instagram my lsseus is my account problem back to my account Instagram please help
Hi,
Thank you for this useful article but my account was disabled 2 months ago and I don’t have the option “APPEAL” when I’m trying to log in. I tried to report as hacked but no one ever acknowledged my request.
I’m lost to the point I have been tweeting them and looking for a member of stuff to help me on LinkedIn.
What would you do in this case?
Did you ever get it back?
You only get an appeal button if you try to log in from the phone app, there is no appeal if you log in from a computer.
I made an account in november, and it got banned in dec. then i made another account in a couple of weeks ago, and it got banned again. i post pictures, and videos that i film. i am now afraid of even using ig. also i do not like uploading bills, id’s or any of that
Don’t do it. I did it 3 times and still they never restored it just kept asking for more pics and verification
The same thing just happened to me when my boss asked me to set up an account for our business — so weird to have an instant ban! We did all of the dumb photo taking, document uploading, etc, so I have hope we will have our account in a few days!
My Facebook and Instagram has been disabled, What can I do to take back my accounts? Please help me, I have important files and docs in my account as well, Can anyone please help me
K
Here’s my own experience here, a totally normal instagram account, uploading pictures from time to time, nothing special, my face mostly, scenes around town, a few stories from time to time. Really nothing special at all. One day, instagram tells me this cryptic and totally useless message that they noticed UAD “Unusual Activity Detected”… my ass. They won’t tell you what this UAD is, when it happened, the IP, the device/devices, nothing.
I recover my account, a few days later, it’s banned with the possibility of appeal but… BUT… guess what? The appeal bounces back “Unable to process the request”.
Now if instagram is asking you to do ALL of that to prove you are human, it’s going further than the justice system, further than homeland security, you should refuse and move on to a competitor like Evo. Don’t accept a company like instagram to bully you, to menace you, to intimidate you and to accuse you of doing something but NOT EVER tell you what. Don’t.