Are unfollow apps safe? Why you should never hand over your password
Want to know who unfollowed you? You'll quickly hit a jungle of apps promising answers — free, on one condition: that you log in with your Instagram account. That's exactly where the line between safe and risky runs. Here's what actually happens when you give an app your password, and how to tell the difference.
What happens when you hand over your password
Log into a third-party app with your Instagram username and password and the app has everything it needs to be you: read your messages, post, follow and unfollow, change your email — and resell the access. You typically notice only when your account starts following hundreds of strangers, or when Instagram locks it for "suspicious activity".
Instagram detects logins from unknown servers. Accounts used by these apps get flagged — and it's your account that takes the punishment, not the app's. Bans following third-party logins are among the most common ways people lose their accounts.
The checklist: safe or risky?
Ask these questions before using any follower service:
- Does it ask for your password? Then the answer is no. No serious service needs a password to count followers — follower lists are visible without logging in.
- Do you have to install an app? An app with a login carries the same risk. A browser-based service that never logs into Instagram cannot touch your account.
- Does it promise the impossible? "See who visited your profile" is technically impossible — a service promising that is lying about more.
- Is the pricing transparent? Anonymous free apps live off your data. An open price means a business model that isn't you.
How we do it — without a password
WhoDitched.me only needs your username. We fetch the same thing anyone can see on your profile from the outside: the follower list. Then we compare it over time and notify you of every change.
- We never log into your account — we can't touch it.
- Instagram has nothing to link to you: you can't get banned for using us.
- Everything happens in your browser. No app, no permissions.
Get started free
Your first full check is free — the entire follower list and who doesn't follow you back. After that, you pay based on how many followers you have, from weekly to daily checks.