‘Great purge of 2026’: Instagram crackdown on fake accounts

New Delhi: Meta-owned social media platform Instagram has reportedly removed millions of bot and inactive accounts in a major cleanup drive in 2026, triggering sharp drops in follower counts for several celebrities, influencers and brands across the platform.

According to reports shared by PopBase, the purge impacted a number of high-profile users, including US influencer and entrepreneur Kylie Jenner, who reportedly lost more than 14 million followers following the action. Several other creators and public figures also witnessed sudden declines in their follower numbers.

Instagram routinely carries out such cleanups to improve authenticity on the platform and remove fake engagement generated through bot accounts. Automated bot profiles are often used to inflate likes, followers, comments and overall engagement metrics on social media.

Responding to the reports, a Meta spokesperson said the action was part of the company’s standard process to remove inactive accounts and clarified that genuine active users were not affected.

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“As part of our routine process to remove inactive accounts, some Instagram accounts may have noticed updates to their follower counts. Active followers remain unaffected, and any restored suspended account will be included in the count again after verification,” the spokesperson said.

The reported cleanup quickly sparked reactions across social media platforms, with many users referring to it as the “Great Purge of 2026.” Users shared screenshots showing steep declines in follower counts and engagement numbers overnight.

One user on X joked that even Instagram’s own official account was not spared in the purge, claiming it lost nearly 9 million followers during the cleanup drive.

“Even Instagram’s own official account reportedly lost over 9 million followers during the cleanup. Nobody was safe,” the user wrote.