Instagram is testing a new feature that closely resembles Snapchat’s Snap Maps, letting users share text and video updates based on their location. This feature is currently being trialed in a few markets and has sparked concerns about privacy and location sharing.
With this new Instagram feature, users can post content that shows up on a map visible to a chosen group of friends. Unlike Snap Maps, which allows for public posts, Instagram’s version appears to have tighter privacy settings.
“Users need to select a ‘specific group of people’ to share their location with, such as ‘Close Friends or only followers they follow back,'” said Christine Pai, a Meta spokesperson, to The Verge.
Although Instagram emphasizes safety and user control, there are still questions about how widely location sharing might become and how long posts will stay visible on the map. Pai did not immediately address these issues.
“Instagram’s feature is currently available only as a ‘small test’ in select markets,” Pai mentioned. “It’s an opt-in tool with controls for location sharing. ‘As always, we are building this feature with safety in mind.'”
This new location-based feature follows Instagram’s pattern of adopting ideas from other platforms. For example, Instagram’s Stories were inspired by Snapchat, Reels by TikTok, and Threads by Twitter.
Instagram has previously experimented with location-based features, such as the private photo map introduced in 2012, which showed users’ photos based on their locations. However, this feature was discontinued in 2016 due to low usage.
If Instagram rolls out this new map feature more widely, it could change how users interact with location-based content and potentially raise new privacy issues, depending on how the controls and sharing options are set up.
