Instagram turns to Instacrash as app bug strikes and users are forced onto other social media sites

• Social media users complained they could not access their Instagram accounts
• Some said the picture sharing network has had problems for the past three days
•  Instagram told users at the time: ‘Sorry for any inconvenience and hang tight!’
• The network is responsible for £3.6billion in advertising revenue in the UK alone 

Frustrated Instagram users were forced to use other social media sites to vent their anger yesterday after the app repeatedly crashed.

Many reported the app failed to work after being opened, despite numerous attempts.

Normal troubleshooting steps, such as switching the phone off and on or deleting the app and reinstalling it failed to solve the problem.

Some fumed that they had been effectively locked out for three days, while owner Meta had remained silent on the matter. The hashtag ‘Instagram down’ began trending on Twitter, with one critic commenting: ‘Hellooo?? It’s been three days. Any solution?’

Frustrated Instagram users were forced to use other social media sites to vent their anger yesterday after the app repeatedly crashed

Another wrote: ‘How much longer is it gonna take to update their damn app,’ One threatened to ‘go back to MySpace if this doesn’t get fixed. I’ve been out of my IG since Monday’

Another wrote: ‘How much longer is it gonna take to update their damn app,’ One threatened to ‘go back to MySpace if this doesn’t get fixed. I’ve been out of my IG since Monday.’

Businesses that rely on the platform for marketing also vented their frustration online.

One owner wrote: ‘My Instagram is closing constantly after a second.’ Another user complained: ‘Over 24 hours of it not working! I literally can’t even do my job.

‘You can’t contact them for support (sic) & they’re still refusing to acknowledge the issue.’ The Federation of Small Businesses said social media platforms like Instagram provide a valuable marketing tool that allows members to compete with firms with big advertising budgets.

Online tech sites suggested the meltdown was caused by an update for Instagram that was rolled out across the platform this week.

Some claimed iPhone users on the iOS 16 version of software or later were vulnerable, while those on earlier versions did not have the same issues. But Android phones including Google Pixel, Samsung and Huawei were also affected.

Downdetector, the real-time outage information service, recorded a high volume of outages on Tuesday and yesterday, with 91 per cent complaining about the app.

Some eight per cent said they had login issues and two per cent struggled to post photos and other content.

Some users also highlighted a glitch where the app icon on their phone screen alerted them to an in-app notification, even through there wasn’t one.

Suggestions to work around the problem included uninstalling and reinstalling the app and leaving it to run in the background, rather than shutting it down. The meltdown follows a similar incident on September 22, when some users reported repeated crashes.

Instagram told users at the time: ‘Sorry for any inconvenience and hang tight!’

The problem was resolved the same day. Meta, which also owns Facebook and WhatsApp, failed to respond to a request for a comment yesterday.

Almost half the UK population have an Instagram account. Most users are aged 25-34.

The site has more than 25 million active business profiles worldwide and generates £3.6billion in advertising revenue in the UK alone.

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