Instagram launches data abuse rewards programme

Facebook launched the Data Abuse Bounty programme in 2018 with the aim of identifying potential violations of its platform by app developers. It is an expansion of a bug bounty programme that pays researchers for identifying flaws or vulnerabilities on websites.

Security researchers will now be able to submit reports about third party apps improperly accessing and storing user data and potentially receive financial rewards.

Nam Nguyen, head of engineering at Instagram, said: “Expanding and building on the Facebook bug bounty program is a key development in our ongoing security efforts, and we are grateful to the wider security community for all they do to help keep our platforms safe.”

In the US, the platform has also added a tool that allows users to report Instagram posts they think are false, in an attempt to crack down on misinformation.