If you’ve noticed that Instagram links are no longer showing previews when sent through iMessage, you’re not alone. Despite speculation it could be due to the growing rift between Facebook and Apple, Instagram has confirmed that this is a bug, and it’s working on a fix.
Instagram links in iMessage have long allowed users to view a preview of the post before clicking through to the full Instagram post. Other links in iMessage, such as Twitter, also provide this preview functionality, and Instagram previews are still working properly in other messaging applications.
The bug doesn’t appear to be affecting everyone, but it is widespread enough for people to voice their concerns on social media and Reddit.
In a statement to Mashable, Instagram confirmed that this issue is due to a bug and that a fix will be coming soon.
Mashable also reached out to the security research team Mysk, who elaborated on the issue a bit further. The team, which has previously exposed security flaws in link previews in Messages, explained:
“This issue is due to a bug, and we are actively working to resolve Instagram link previews in iMessage so that they load normally,” an Instagram spokesperson said over email.
Nonetheless, Instagram is working on a fix that we expect to roll out soon — and this is not at all related to the growing feud between Facebook and Apple. It’s simply a bug that Instagram is working to resolve as we speak.
“When iMessage tries to open the link to look for the metadata, Instagram forwards the requests to the login page,” Mysk said. “Because the login page of Instagram has no metadata for link previews, iMessage doesn’t show anything.”
