Instagram follower tracking apps are popular on the App Store and the Google Play store. These apps promise to show you who unfollowed you and a list of people you follow who don’t follow you back.

Many Instagram users want to download these apps because Instagram doesn’t offer this as a native feature. However, these apps aren’t always reliable or safe for download.

If you’re thinking of downloading one of these apps or already have one downloaded, be sure to read this first and think twice about using these apps.

Security Issues With Instagram Follower Tracking Apps

One of the biggest issues with these apps relates to security. These apps require you to turn over your Instagram username and password to a third party. This means that your password is no longer secure.

After all, how much can you trust a third-party app? Just because an app has positive reviews in the App Store or the Google Play Store doesn’t mean it’s safe enough to store your password.

With your password no longer being secure, getting hacked becomes more likely. You may have seen friends or acquaintances on Instagram get hacked before. Most of the time hackers will ask your friends for money or send links to your friends which can result in them getting hacked too.

Sometimes, getting hacked means you’ll need to create a new Instagram account and you'll lose all your followers. To prevent any of this from happening, avoid giving away your password to any third party.

These follower-tracking apps don't need to be the hackers themselves for you to be at risk. Even if you download a safe, trusted app; this app might not be completely secure. This means that if hackers target the third-party app, your information could be compromised.

Instagram API Reliability Issues

Due to past changes in Instagram’s API, these apps might not even be reliable. While past Instagram versions made it easy for these apps to operate, newer versions won’t be as accurate and some apps may have lost their access to this information completely.

This means that aside from the potential security issues of these apps, downloading one might not work. This means you will potentially turn over your password for nothing.

What to Do if You Downloaded a Follower Tracking App

If you have a follower tracking app downloaded or downloaded one in the past, there are still things you can do to prevent your Instagram account from getting hacked. The first thing you should do is disconnect from the app and delete it.

After disconnecting your account, the app won’t be able to grab your information anymore. However, your password could still be stored somewhere else. After you disconnect, be sure to change your password.

After changing your password, the last thing you should do is enable two-factor authentication. This will make it even harder for a potential hacker to get into your account. Two-factor authentication means that you will also get a code sent to your phone or email when a device that Instagram doesn’t recognize tries to log in.

How to See Who Doesn't Follow You Back on Instagram

The best way to check if someone is following you back on Instagram is to just go to their page, tap Following, and see if they're following you. If they are, you will appear at the top of the list. If not, you won't appear there at all. Then, you can choose whether or not to unfollow.

If you're trying to go through all the people you're following to see who doesn't follow you back, the best way to do that would be to your following list, and tap Sort by then Date followed: latest or Date followed: earliest. Don't choose Default, as that can change.

Then, just scroll down the list and check each individual follower. Instagram does limit how many times you can unfollow per day, so depending on your follower count this may take a while.

This can be a tedious task, but it's the only way to ensure the safety of your Instagram account.

Are Instagram Follower Tracking Apps Ever Useful?

These apps have a variety of problems including security and reliability issues. This means that downloading these apps isn’t a good idea. Even if you download one to check and then change your password right away, you'll still get bad information.

If you’re interested in seeing if someone you follow doesn’t follow you back, you’ll need to do things the old-fashioned way and go to their page to check. While this can take a lot of time, it’s the only way that guarantees you won’t get hacked. Also, that information is real-time so it’s accurate.

You can also upgrade to a professional account, which will show you basic follow and unfollow statistics. Either way, avoid using these apps as they aren't safe or reliable.