Instagram Banned My Account Before I Posted A Single Image – Here’s What I Did To Fix It

Well…this is a new one for me. I was recently banned for violating Instagram’s terms of use for an account that I had:

1. Just created (I was banned 2 seconds after pushing the “Create Account” button and
2. 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 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.

My 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 the account had been locked. Here’s what the notice looks like.

Oh, goodie! Instagram banned my account before I even posted a single image.

Apparently, I violated the Instagram terms of use without ever even posting a photo. Neato!

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 issues. Instagram support is notoriously bad and automated using AI, so I’m not looking forward to the process.

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.

Click the Appeal link in the app and follow the steps to start the Instagram appeals process

In the screens that follow, 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:

To prove to Instagram that I am a human and own the domain, I uploaded the receipt for the domain purchase.

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 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.

Here’s what the first email looked like:

This is the first email request for information from Instagram requesting a business document.

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.

Now Instagram wants me to take a photo of myself with a code.

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.

Just me…holding a silly piece of paper with a code on it so I can get my Instagram account unlocked.

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.

After jumping through all the hoops, Instagram lifted the ban on my new account

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…

After jumping through all the hoops, Instagram lifted the ban and gave me access back to the new account

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.

While 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.

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