Tech Desk 
Mar 16, 2026
Meta has officially announced that its social media platform, Instagram, will stop supporting end-to-end encrypted messages starting May 8.
Meta spokesperson Dina El-Kassaby Luce, in a statement, said that Instagram is discontinuing the feature because “very few people” were using E2EE in their DMs. For this, the platform has begun notifying impacted users about the change inside its app, and has also posted an update to its support page, suggesting that users download E2EE chats and images before it discontinues the feature
“Anyone who wants to keep messaging with end-to-end encryption can easily do that on WhatsApp,” added Luce.
What does end-to-end encryption offer?
The end-to-end encryption method safeguard all messages between two devices because only those devices can decrypt the content. The chat platform does not have any ability to view the chat contents. However, once the feature is discontinued, Instagram will protect messages through transmission security.
If you're a Instagram user who need to use encrypted chats will obtain message and file download instructions before the feature ends. Moreover, Meta-owned social media platform offer account data downloads for users who need to back up their encrypted messages, which will vanish with the upcoming feature removal.
How to download Instagram data on phone
- To download your data, go to your profile on Instagram, where you need to tap the three-line menu in the top right corner, and then choose the Settings and privacy option.
- Scroll down to tap Accounts Centre and proceed to choose information and permissions.
- Select the option 'Download your information'.
- Choose the Instagram account which you want to download information from. You can choose between retrieving your messages alone or obtaining the complete account records.
- You need to choose between two file formats, HTML and JSON, while selecting the desired download resolution for photos and videos.
- Instagram will start downloading requested data once the request is confirmed.
- The system will send the download link after your file has been prepared.
