Imagine you’re scrolling through your Instagram feed, eager to like a friend’s photo or comment on a funny video, and you’re hit with this confusing message: “We limit how often you can do certain things on Instagram to protect our community.” It’s very frustrating.
This restriction can have you sitting on your thumbs or pacing with a lot of questions on your mind. Questions like “What exactly is this error And how can you fix it?” Don’t fret, we’ve got you.
In this article, we’ll walk you through the causes of this restriction and how you can rectify the situation when you fall victim to it.
Why Does This Happen?
Unscrupulous people go to various lengths to increase the number of comments, likes, and follows on their pages by employing bots. These bots automatically like and comment on their pages, boosting follower counts inorganically and messing with Instagram’s algorithm.
Instagram, like other social media platforms, has some built-in safeguards to combat these bots. Unfortunately, these programs may flag your account as a bot when they detect unusual activity on your account. They might temporarily restrict some of your actions like following, unfollowing, liking, commenting, or direct messaging.
There are a few common triggers that might spur Instagram to slap you with a restriction. They include:
- Excessive activity
Following/unfollowing (Where you follow an account and unfollow after a while), liking, or commenting too quickly in a short period can raise red flags.
- Suspicious third-party apps
Using unauthorized apps to automate your actions on Instagram can trigger restrictions.
- Violating Community Guidelines
Engaging in behavior like hate speech, bullying, or spamming can lead to these restrictions from Instagram.
The duration of these restrictions varies depending on the severity of the violation. It can range from a few hours to 24 hours or even longer in extreme cases. If you violate Instagram’s policies frequently, you can expect longer durations for each subsequent ban.
Troubleshooting and Fixing the Error
This restriction can be an inconvenience, but there are a few steps you can take to rectify it:
- Take a break: The simplest solution is to step away from the app for a while. The restriction will usually lift automatically after some time, so you can wait it out.
- Review your activity: Reflect on your recent actions and check if you performed any practices that might be considered bot-like or against community guidelines. If there’s any, deleting the post may help.
- Report the issue: Contact Instagram’s support, and explain the situation If you believe the restriction is a mistake.
To contact Instagram’s support team, go to your profile and tap the hamburger menu icon at the top right of your screen. Now go to “Settings and Privacy,” swipe to the bottom, and click on “Help”.
On the help screen, you’ll see the “Report a Problem” option. Follow the prompts and explain what happened to your account.
- Remove any unauthorized apps: Avoid using third-party apps that promise to show who unfollowed you or automate actions. They often violate Instagram’s terms and can get you banned.
By following these tips, you can get back to enjoying Instagram and avoid future restrictions.
