Original content

Instagram for Creators lists photos and videos you took, your own photography edits, and designs such as photo series, how-to guides and visual stories as examples of original content.1 When you use someone else’s material, additions that may qualify include text that supplies context beyond describing the scene, graphics that provide new information, or a remix that transforms the original.1 Posting a screenshot of another person’s work with little added does not qualify merely because you credit its creator.2 Instagram for Creators distinguishes these originality rules from its intellectual property policies: you remain responsible for obtaining any necessary permission to use someone else’s work.2 Because Instagram acknowledges that its originality judgments can be mistaken, it recommends regularly checking Account Status to see any limits on your reach, make changes so your content can be recommended again, or appeal a decision.2

Instagram for Creators says original creators should receive credit for their work even when other accounts repost it.8 Instagram’s repost feature credits the original poster and can bring their content to the reposter’s followers, including people who do not already follow the original creator.6 Using another editing app is not itself a penalty, according to Mosseri, but a third-party watermark on the resulting content can affect how widely it is shown, a warning Instagram for Creators also gives.89