Instagram, published content will be indexed by Google: here's how to oppose it

It is a novelty that paves the way for greater visibility of content but, at the same time, raises several questions about privacy and control of one's images online: with the arrival of this change, anyone, even non-Instagram subscribers, will have the possibility of viewing what is published in the feeds through a web search. However, Meta reassures the community of its subscribers.

For a few days now, several Instagram users who use a professional account, such as Business or Creator, have seen a notification appear that states “Starting July 10, 2025, search engines will automatically be allowed to display all photos and videos on search results pages”: the notice, currently reserved only for this segment of users, announces that the content they publish on their profiles may be indexed by Google and other search engines, and therefore appear when similar queries are typed.

Before raising alarms, however, it is a good idea to check what type of account you are using to understand if the new feature that will come into force in a few days will also affect you: just open the Instagram settings through the menu available at the top right and scroll down to the bottom, corresponding to Account type and tools.

If the profile in use is affected by this news, obviously the consent can be denied at any time and there are two different ways to do it. The first way to oppose can be reached directly by tapping on the Do not allow button; however, if you have quickly closed the notification due to distraction or haste, you can still express your refusal to index photos and videos by going to the social settings, in particular in Account Privacy, and deactivating the item Allow to show public photos and videos in search engine results.

In reality, however, it would not be the first time ever that Instagram content ends up in Google's index. From a support page , in fact, it is clear that although the social network requires search engines not to index visual content from stories, reels, posts and highlighted content, starting from January 1, 2020, the platform allows the indexing of photos and videos taken from public reels and shared posts but only if published by accounts whose owner is 18 years of age or older and is using a public or professional account.