Meta says Instagram will no longer support end-to-end encrypted messages starting May 8, saying “very few people” were using E2EE in their DMs

Android Police 2026-03-15 Karandeep Singh Oberoi

Context & Ripple Effects

Meta’s move reverses the direction it outlined in 2023, when it said Instagram DMs would receive encryption shortly after Messenger’s rollout. Messenger ultimately gained default encryption for one-to-one chats and calls, while Instagram is now removing its DM encryption support.

The decision also follows Meta’s earlier retreat from cross-app Messenger and Instagram chats, leaving the two messaging products on increasingly separate product paths.

First-order effects

Instagram DM users who use end-to-end encryption will lose that option on May 8; Meta says the affected group is small.
Meta narrows the privacy posture of Instagram messaging even as Messenger retains its previously deployed encryption for certain conversations.

Second-order effects

Meta must manage a clearer product distinction between Messenger and Instagram DMs, rather than presenting encryption as a shared messaging direction.
Users for whom encrypted messaging is a deciding feature may reassess which messaging service they use, while Meta can concentrate Instagram DM development on its non-encrypted experience.

Third-order effects

If low adoption repeatedly determines encryption support, privacy features may be treated less as platform-wide defaults and more as product-specific capabilities justified by demonstrated use.
The split between encrypted Messenger and non-encrypted Instagram DMs could make Meta’s messaging strategy more fragmented after the earlier end of cross-app chat interoperability.

The trend: Meta’s messaging portfolio is shifting from a unified encryption ambition toward service-by-service privacy choices shaped by adoption and product priorities.

Discussion

@matthew_d_green Matthew Green on x
So much valuable training data Meta will now have access to.
@cstanley Christopher Stanley on x
Hey Instagram users, come use X Chat 😎
@matthew_d_green Matthew Green on x
WhatsApp still maintains end-to-end encryption. But how long do you think that will be true?
@matthew_d_green Matthew Green on x
God, they're not even reading the documents they're frantically updating. Check out this one that promises default E2E in Instagram, then (this week) suddenly pretends it was optional. https://about.fb.com/... [image]
@matthew_d_green Matthew Green on x
Just in case you don't believe me, here are some resources documenting Meta's very public commitment to default encryption in Instagram DMs. Not “opt in”. https://about.fb.com/... [image]
@matthew_d_green Matthew Green on x
They seem to have quietly abandoned the push for encryption to be a default. And now they're quietly abandoning encryption. This is a big 180.
@matthew_d_green Matthew Green on x
A big tell is the statement by Meta in this article: “very few people were opting in.” Meta knows opt-in encryption doesn't get adoption, which is why their original strategy was to make encryption on by *default* in WhatsApp, Messenger and their other products. [image]
@matthew_d_green Matthew Green on x
Meta appears to be reversing its strong stance on encryption. The first obvious casualty is that they're abandoning and disabling end-to-end encryption in Instagram DMs.
@dominiconpc Dom on x
@stupidtechtakes Further down in the learn more btw.. “We'll be able to see and review up to 30 of the most recent messages sent in a conversation that you choose to report and send to us from your device.”
@tuxpizza @tuxpizza on x
Is this the first time a major service has REMOVED end-to-end encryption instead of adding it?
@stupidtechtakes @stupidtechtakes on x
why they doing that [image]
@masnick.com Mike Masnick on bluesky
Meta spent seven years telling us they were working on true end-to-end encryption across all their various messaging apps... and finally rolled it out in 2024. And then less than three years later, they're shutting it off for Instagram? What? — www.androidpolice.com/instagram…
r/technews r on reddit
Instagram to discontinue end-to-end encryption for DMs
r/enshittification r on reddit
Meta: The Enshittification Company
r/technology r on reddit
Instagram to discontinue end-to-end encryption for DMs
r/privacy r on reddit
Meta to Shut Down Instagram End-to-End Encrypted Chat Support Starting May 2026

Chronicles