Instagram introduces trash can feature to limit hacker impact

Instagram releases the Recently Deleted feature, in which files such as videos and photos that an Instagram user deletes are stored for 30 days. When a user wants to recover or delete this data, he or she must first verify by email or SMS.

With Recently Deleted, Instagram wants to counter the harmful consequences of hacking attacks. The platform says that hackers sometimes delete data from a hacked account. Those images and videos had been irrevocably deleted until now. However, with Recently Deleted those files will be placed in the Recently Deleted folder, where they can be permanently deleted or restored.

When a user wants to remove or restore something from the recycle bin, users must first authenticate. According to Engadget, among others, users must authenticate as the rightful user by text or email. The function thus offers an additional form of two-step authentication. Users can already optionally use two-factor authentication for the entire app.

The feature automatically places deleted photos, videos, reels, IGTV videos and stories in the Recently Deleted folder. Users can find this folder in the Account menu in the Settings of the app. All files are kept for thirty days, except for the unarchived, deleted stories. These will remain in Instagram’s trash for 24 hours. Deleted data is not visible to other users.