Instagram Maps: What Homeowners Need to Know About the New Location Sharing Feature

For homeowners, the new Instagram Maps feature presents a significant privacy consideration, and the most direct way to protect your property's security is to ensure location sharing is turned off. While the feature is opt-in by default, concerns about stalking and doxxing have made it essential for individuals to actively manage their settings. This guide provides a step-by-step process to disable location sharing and explains the potential risks to your home's privacy.

What is Instagram Maps and Why is it a Concern for Homeowners?

Instagram Maps is a new feature within the social media application that allows users to share their real-time or last-known location with a selected group of people. Similar to "Find My" services on Apple devices, it is designed to help friends connect in person. However, for homeowners, this raises immediate property security concerns. Sharing your location can inadvertently reveal your home address, making you vulnerable to unwanted attention or revealing when your property is vacant. Criticisms on platforms like X and Threads highlight fears that the feature could be misused for stalking, a risk that is particularly acute for individuals who publicly share details about their homes.

Is Your Location Shared on Instagram Maps By Default?

According to Instagram's head, Adam Mosseri, location sharing is completely off by default. When you first open the feature, you are prompted to choose whether to participate. Your location is only shared if you explicitly opt-in and select an audience (followers you follow back, Close Friends, or a custom list). Despite this assurance, some users have reported their location was shared without explicit consent, though these claims are unverified. From a security standpoint, it is prudent to manually verify your settings rather than assuming they are disabled.

How to Disable Instagram Maps to Protect Your Home Address

To ensure your home address remains private, follow these steps to disable location sharing. This process helps mitigate risks associated with revealing your primary residence or second home.

1. Tap the messages icon (paper airplane symbol) at the top right of your home feed.
2. Tap "Map" at the top of your direct message inbox.
3. Tap the settings icon (gear symbol) in the top right corner.
4. To turn off location sharing, choose "No One."
5. Tap "Done" at the bottom to save your changes.

Even with location sharing off, you can still view the map to see posts from people who have shared their location with you.

How to Interpret the Map Status Icons for Complete Privacy

After accessing the settings, various shapes indicate your status. Understanding these icons is key to confirming your privacy level.

• A blue arrow means you are actively sharing your location with your chosen audience.
• A red dot indicates you are not sharing your location with anyone—this is the recommended setting for homeowners.
• An orange triangle signifies you have disabled location permissions for Instagram entirely through your device's settings, which is the most secure option.

The most effective method to protect your address is to disable location permissions for Instagram directly in your phone’s system settings. This action prevents the app from accessing your location data at the source.

To maximize your property's security, proactively check your Instagram Maps settings and disable location sharing. For homeowners, maintaining privacy around your primary residence is a key aspect of overall safety, and managing social media features is an important part of that process.