Is Instagram Secretly Listening To Your Conversations?

Are you someone who also thinks Instagram is secretly listening to your conversations through your phone microphone? Well, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri has finally addressed these concerns directly. In a recent

video shared on the platform, Mosseri said: “We do not listen to you. We do not use the phone’s microphone to eavesdrop on you.""It would be a gross violation of privacy, it would drain your phone’s battery and you’d see the microphone indicator light up," he added.

Is Instagram Secretly Listening To Your Conversations?

For years, many Instagram users have felt that the app is listening to them. They say ads often pop up right after they talk about a product, service or place, which has fueled fears that Instagram might be eavesdropping.However, Mosseri explained that these ads are not based on conversations but on other factors that create the illusion of targeting.One reason is user activity. Often, people forget that they searched for a product online, clicked on related pages or visited shopping websites before having a conversation. Since Meta partners with advertisers who track user activity across its platforms, ads can appear based on these interactions rather than conversations.Another reason is social influence. Instagram looks at what your friends or people with similar interests are engaging with. So if your friend searches for or clicks on a product, you might also start seeing ads for it. This can make it look like the ad is linked to your private conversations, even though it’s not.ALSO READ: Mark Zuckerberg's Meta Will Read Your Instagram, WhatsApp Chats With AI To Target Ads: What It Means For You? Mosseri also explained that sometimes it’s just coincidence. You might scroll past an ad without paying attention, and then see it later after talking about the same topic, which can feel like Instagram is listening. In many cases, the ad showing up after a conversation is completely random.This isn’t the first time Meta has denied using microphones for ad targeting. Facebook (now Meta) rejected similar claims back in 2016, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg firmly denied it during a 2018 Senate hearing.However, Meta has also confirmed that it is taking personalisation to the next level. Soon, every chat you have with its AI across Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger could directly influence the posts, reels and ads in your feed. While Meta says this will help show users content they are more likely to be interested in, the move has already raised privacy concerns. There’s no way to opt out of this, so the only way to avoid it is to stop using Meta AI altogether. Many users may feel uneasy knowing their conversations are being analysed.