How long does Instagram keep submitted government ID data and how can I request its deletion?
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Executive summary
Instagram’s general account-deletion timeline: after you request deletion your profile is hidden immediately, you have 30 days to cancel, and Meta says full removal can take up to 90 days [1] [2]. Available sources do not state a single, public retention period specifically for government ID documents that users submit to Instagram for age or identity verification; reporting and privacy notices instead discuss broader deletion windows and agency PIAs when governments use Instagram [3] [2].
1. What Instagram publicly says about deleting account data
Meta’s user-facing guidance and many consumer guides say that once you request permanent account deletion the profile is deactivated from view immediately, you get a 30‑day “grace” period to cancel the request, and Meta may take up to 90 days to complete deletion across its systems [1] [2]. Security and privacy outlets repeat that caveat: visible removal fast, backend purging can take longer [4] [2]. These sources describe deletion of account posts, messages and other profile data but do not single out government ID images in their retention timelines [1] [2].
2. No clear public timeline for government ID images in current reporting
None of the supplied search results provide a definitive policy statement saying “Instagram retains submitted government IDs for X days.” Consumer guides and deletion guides discuss overall account-data deletion windows (30–90 days) but do not specify how long ID documents used for verification are kept separately [1] [2]. Reporting about specific platform data leaks (or third‑party incidents) mentions risks but not an Instagram-published retention schedule for verification documents [5].
3. Where government / agency records policies appear
When U.S. federal agencies use Instagram for outreach, their Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) and agency notices say Instagram Insights and information agencies collect are retained in accordance with federal record-retention rules, but those documents address agency records, not Instagram’s private verification files [6] [3] [7]. The FTC and DHS PIAs note agencies must follow federal retention, and that Instagram Insights follow agency retention requirements — not how Instagram retains users’ ID uploads [3] [7].
4. Practical implications and risk context
Journalists and privacy sites warn that documents you upload for verification (IDs, video selfies) are sensitive and have been exposed in other services’ leaks; guides about age-verification in Australia and elsewhere note users’ discomfort handing over IDs and cite past leaks at other companies as precedent for caution [8] [9]. Cybersecurity news catalogs breach histories involving credential dumps and platform incidents, which reinforces why people worry about how long such documents live on corporate servers [5].
5. How to request deletion or limit exposure (what sources describe)
Consumer guides list steps to download your data and to initiate account deletion through Instagram’s settings and web links; they emphasize downloading backups before deletion because after deletion you lose access to data [10] [11] [12]. To attempt removal of data overall: request a data download, then submit the account deletion request (which triggers the 30-day window) — sources say this is Instagram’s standard path for wholesale account and associated data removal [10] [12] [2].
6. Practical next steps you can take now (based on available reporting)
- Download your account data first via Instagram’s Data Download / “Create File” option so you retain copies before deletion [10] [12].
- Submit a deletion request; note Instagram’s 30‑day cancellation window and that full deletion may take up to 90 days [1] [2].
- If you submitted an ID and want assurance it’s removed, available sources do not cite a specific Instagram removal endpoint for verification documents; you should follow Instagram support channels and cite your verification submission when requesting targeted deletion — but no public guarantee or specific timeline for ID-file deletion is provided in current reporting (not found in current reporting; [1]; [10]0).
7. Conflicting viewpoints and limitations in the record
Meta’s broad deletion timelines (30–90 days) are clear in consumer guides and help‑type reporting [1] [2]. However, government PIAs and agency notices speak to agency record retention when agencies use Instagram but do not confirm Instagram’s internal retention for uploaded IDs [3] [7]. Sources raise reasonable privacy concerns citing past breaches or third‑party incidents [5] [9], but no source in this set supplies a definitive, Instagram-published retention period for government ID submissions.
Bottom line
If you’ve uploaded a government ID to Instagram, follow the consumer guides: download your data, file a deletion request to trigger Instagram’s stated 30‑day grace period and up-to-90-day deletion window, and contact Instagram support to ask explicitly about removal of verification documents — but be aware that the supplied reporting does not publish a separate, concrete retention timeframe for government IDs [1] [2] [10].